


Lost Girl

by MarvelObsessedgirl3



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Avengers Compound, Avengers Family, Avengers Feels, Awesome Natasha Romanov, Bucky Barnes & Natasha Romanov Friendship, Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov Friendship, Domestic Avengers, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Marvel Universe, Natasha Romanov & Tony Stark Friendship, Natasha Romanov Feels, Natasha Romanov Is Not A Robot, Natasha Romanov Is a Good Bro, Natasha Romanov-centric, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, On the Run, Past Child Abuse, Protective Avengers, Protective Natasha Romanov, References to Depression, Steve Rogers & Natasha Romanov Friendship, Superheroes, The Avengers Are Good Bros
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-30
Updated: 2021-03-29
Packaged: 2021-04-21 04:35:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 70
Words: 144,855
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22039042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarvelObsessedgirl3/pseuds/MarvelObsessedgirl3
Summary: Riley is an 11 year old girl, who has been on the run for over a month, after an incident with her foster family. She has powers that can control the elements and is an orphan. What happens when she is saved by Natasha Romanoff one evening and gets taken in by the Avengers?
Relationships: Avengers Team & Original Female Character(s), Bruce Banner & Clint Barton & Steve Rogers & Natasha Romanov & Tony Stark & Thor, Natasha Romanov & Avengers Team, Peter Parker & Natasha Romanov, Steve Rogers & Natasha Romanov, Tony Stark & Avengers Team
Comments: 350
Kudos: 343





	1. Runaway

**Author's Note:**

> Hi all!  
I hope you enjoy this fan fiction! If anyone would like to donate anything to me, I would greatly appreciate it, all your donations help me to be able to keep spending my time, writing my fanfictions, even a pound/dollar helps!  
I love creating this content for you all<3
> 
> My PayPal is: https://paypal.me/SClark753?locale.x=en_GB

Riley looked up at the darkening sky and took a shuddery breath, preparing herself for another cold night. She hoisted her bag onto her back and made her way down the streets of New York, looking for somewhere to crash for the night. If Riley had any wish, it would be that she could have a sandwich. Her stomach rumbled, as if to remind her of the fact that she hadn’t eaten since that morning and she sighed, looking around herself for anyone that could be following her.

Running away wasn’t the best idea and Riley knew that, however, an incident with her foster parents had changed that though, a few months ago and Riley had had enough. She had packed a bag and left. Since then, she had been living on the streets, avoiding any kind of policeman or just people in general. Nobody had given her a second glance, apart from a few women here and there – with one lady even offering to give her a room for free, which Riley politely declined, as she didn’t want her to tell the police where she was. She was sick of living in a care home and when the day came for a foster family, she thought that things might look up and she might have a normalish life, but no, once again, the world had turned on her and she was left alone. That was how she liked it. Riley might only be 11, but she knew enough to know that if she had nobody to depend on, that meant that there was nobody to let her down.

She had been living on the streets for around a month. Riley had managed to survive on the money that she had stolen secretly from her foster family – after the incident that occurred. However, looking down at the few crumpled up dollar bills and loose change in her gloved hand, she sighed and swallowed down a feeling of nervousness at the fact that very soon, she would not be able to afford food…or anything…no medicine, no clothes…nothing.

Riley made her way through Central Park and sat down on a bench, cuddling further into her very dirty winter coat, for any type of warmth. She had been showering at the local swimming pool on an evening and had been keeping herself busy by reading in the library. She had a small sleeping bag and due to the fact that she had only just turned 11 a few months ago, she was easily able to find small spaces to sleep in undisturbed, however, on nights like these, all Riley wanted was a nice warm bed.

Riley wasn’t like any normal child though, she had a big secret, she had special powers. She had no idea how she got them, or why, but she had kept it a secret from everybody – her powers enabled her to control the elements: fire, water, earth and air. However, the last time she used her powers, she ended up running away to the streets and Riley quickly dismissed that thought. She couldn’t think about what had happened now…it was too painful. She hadn’t used her powers since then and she wasn’t planning on using them.

Riley watched the snow covered trees sway in the night breeze slightly and the light snow that continued to fall, whilst keeping alert for any possible police officers that could be on duty. She counted the money in her hand and swore under her breath. What was she going to do? Could she get a job at her age? No…people would definitely wonder why she wasn’t in school…what was she going to do?

‘Well, well…what have we got here?’ A group of four young men, who looked like they were in their early twenties, were walking towards her and Riley felt her chest constrict. Being on the streets, came with many dangers and a young girl by herself in the dead of night, was very high up on that danger list. Usually, she would be hidden by now, but that particular night, she wanted to sit in Central Park for a while…which she was now regretting. Thinking quickly for what to do, Riley realised that she was very much stuck. The snow was coming down quicker now, and she had no access to anything that she could use to defend herself, apart from her powers, that would land her in jail or a lab…

‘What’s your name then beautiful?’ Riley tried to control her breathing and stood up, just for one of the men to push her back down on the bench.

‘Oi, he asked you a question.’ Riley glared at the man who had pushed her down.

‘Just fuck off and leave me alone.’

The men looked at each other and gave each other a shared look that made Riley feel sick. She didn’t need to be an expert in men to know what they were collectively thinking. The leader of the group – who had first spoken, made a move towards her, but Riley dodged around him and started to run away. Unfortunately, one of the men had anticipated this and caught her around her waist, throwing her into the snow.

Riley screamed in fear as they all made their way towards her. She closed her eyes and threw her arms up to cover her face, feeling the snow start to pick up nearby, when all of a sudden, the men started shouting and swearing, seemingly being attacked by something…or someone, if all the sounds of punching was anything to go by. Riley opened her eyes and saw a woman with red hair, dodging attacks and easily managing to take on all four of the men without breaking a sweat. The snow continued to fall heavily as she watched in both awe of the woman and in fear that one of the men would manage to hit her, until all the men were running away, some with possible broken limbs – if the sounds of snapping and screaming were anything to go by. The snow instantly stopped and Riley felt relieved about what had just happened. She just assumed that she was trained in martial arts, but she couldn’t stop the impressed look on her face, as she looked at the woman.

‘You ok, Kid?’ The woman with red hair was looking at Riley with a concerned expression and she offered her a hand up, which Riley took. She nodded and looked into the woman’s piercingly green eyes that made her feel uncomfortable, as if the woman was looking right through her.

‘I…yeah I’m fine…thanks for…’ Riley looked around at the men who had all run away and she gestured to where they had been, seemingly lost for words. The woman nodded and then her eyebrows furrowed slightly.

‘What are you doing, all by yourself, out here in the dark? Shouldn’t you be at home?’ Heart rate rising at the thought of this woman dragging her to the police station, Riley bit her lip and shrugged.

‘I was on my way home…until those morons started harassing me.’ Riley lied easily, avoiding the penetrating look that the woman was giving her – her eyebrow quirked as if she didn’t believe her. Occupying herself with picking up her bag from the floor, Riley tried to think about how she could escape this woman, without causing a scene.

‘Where do you live? I’ll walk you home.’ Riley paused from picking her bag up from the floor. ‘No. I can’t tell you that.’ She said immediately, as the woman looked at her intently. ‘And why not?’

‘Because you’re a stranger.’ Riley said simply, hoisting her bag onto her back and looking at the woman. ‘Look, thank you for saving me…I don’t know where you got those cool moves from, but…they’re super awesome. I…guess I’d better go, so thanks again.’ Making a move to leave, Riley waved awkwardly and turned around, however, the woman reached a hand out to stop Riley from leaving; she then reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a cheese and tomato sandwich, still in the wrapping and handed it to the girl.

‘I was saving this for later, but you look like you could use a pick me up. Here.’ Riley knew better than to accept things from strangers, but this woman had ample opportunity to kill her and she had just saved her from a group of men – so Riley took the sandwich gratefully and then frowned.

‘You didn’t have to…but thank you…’

‘Natasha.’ The woman supplied, giving her a small smile. Riley nodded and looked at the sandwich, feeling her stomach rumble.

‘Thanks Natasha. You’ve… no idea how much I appreciate it.’ Natasha quirked an eyebrow. ‘It’s only a sandwich Kid, not a million dollars.’ Riley’s eyes widened at her mistake and she hastily replied. ‘No! I…I mean for…for saving me.’

‘No problem. I’m just glad that I happened to be passing by. You’d better go. Bet your parents are worried.’ Natasha mused, watching Riley for her reaction, but her face was almost stoic. ‘Oh…yeah sure. I mean, they’re probably really worried…I just… I had a late shift at my job that I have and this all made me a bit later than usual…’ Riley laughed nervously, hoping that the woman would just believe her and go; however Natasha narrowed her eyes for a second and then she gestured to the bench behind them.

‘Have a seat Kid.’ Riley gulped and tentatively sat down, putting at least an arms length away from the woman. She had already debated making a run for it, but after watching Natasha’s martial arts skills, she figured that she probably would just catch her, so she resigned herself to having a full blown conversation with this woman. The less she told her, the better and then she could leave. Lying was the best option, so as not to worry the woman.

‘You’re a runaway.’ Natasha said nonchalantly, as Riley felt her heart drop into her stomach. _How did this woman possibly know that?! _

‘No I’m not.’ Riley replied defensively, pocketing the sandwich which she so desperately wanted to eat.

‘Then why are you out here, at almost 11pm, by yourself in the middle of Central Park?’

Riley frowned. ‘I already told you…I was at work.’ Natasha raised an eyebrow. ‘There’s rules and regulations in work – and an important one, is that children cannot work past 7pm, if they are under the age of 14, which you are – probably around 12 by the look of you. It’s currently almost midnight.’

‘I’m 11 and what do you care?!’ Riley said angrily and then she froze. Natasha looked at her smugly, as Riley scowled, realising that she had essentially just blown her cover in front of a perfect stranger. In all fairness though, this woman was very good at interrogating people.

‘So, you’re a runaway.’ Natasha repeated and Riley reluctantly nodded, not meeting her eyes. ‘Why?’

‘It’s none of your business and I don’t want to talk about it. I’m managing perfectly well on my own.’ Natasha pursed her lips. ‘That’s why I just had to save you from a group of perverts? Yeah, you definitely looked like you were managing.’ Riley felt anger rise up inside her. How could this woman possibly think that she was about to start opening up to her, when she had only just met her?!

‘I was handling it and I already said thank you!’

‘I’m not asking for a thank you, Kid. First thing’s first, what’s your name?’

‘Why do you want to know?’ Riley replied petulantly, crossing her arms. Natasha sighed and gave her a pointed look. ‘Because your name isn’t Kid and I’d rather call you by your name.’

‘Riley.’ She said, feeling again like Natasha could literally see right through her façade. Natasha nodded. ‘Nice name. So, Riley, how long have you been on the streets?’ The girl shuffled anxiously and played with a strand of thread on one of her mittens before answering softly. ‘I don’t know the exact time, but I think it’s been a little bit over a month. I left just before Halloween.’ Natasha hummed in response and gestured to the lump in Riley’s coat, which was where the sandwich was.

‘When was the last time you ate?’ Biting her lip, Riley sighed. ‘This morning, a kid gave me half a croissant, instead of binning it.’ Natasha looked at the girl with an expression akin to sympathetic and Riley looked away, as she felt unwelcome tears prickle her eyes.

Natasha watched as the girl blinked away angry tears and her eyes furrowed in thought, before she reached over and put a hand over Riley’s mittened ones. ‘Do you know who I am?’

Riley sniffed and nodded in confusion. ‘Natasha?’

Natasha chuckled and shook her head in amusement. ‘Gone where the days when I was recognised. Damn. Riley, my name is Natasha, but my more common name, is the Black Widow – bet you’ve heard of her.’ Riley’s mouth fell open and she paled.

‘Oh…my god. I’ve just been talking to…to the Black Widow…to an Avenger?!’

‘Yep.’ Natasha said popping the ‘p’ and she looked directly at the now eager child. ‘I mean, I knew you were good at fighting…but I just figured that you were good at martial arts! Which, you are…clearly if you’re the Black Widow. I’ve always admired you guys – you were never afraid to be yourselves and I want to be like you when I’m older, you have no idea how much you inspire me…and I…I’m rambling aren’t I? God, sorry. You must think I’m mental.’ Riley said, blushing slightly, eyes cast onto her lap, as Natasha smirked.

‘No, I think it’s cute. Look, I’m just worried about you. It isn’t safe for a kid your age to be on the streets alone. Do you want to tell me why you ran away? Maybe we can work something out with your family?’ Riley closed her eyes as she felt all her anger surge back up, at being asked that question again and of being reminded of the incident. She took a few calming breaths and forced herself not to think about what had happened with her foster parents, however, her anger seemed to be getting the best of her and this time, she was worried that she couldn’t control the snow.

‘So, I’m assuming that your running away, had something to do with this?’ Riley opened her eyes and looked at Natasha quizzically, who had moved her hand from covering her own, until she followed the womans gesture, which was to the snow around them - which had started to swirl in many different directions – seemingly mirroring Riley’s mood, Natasha guessed.

Riley inhaled sharply and put a mittened hand to her mouth in shock. She hadn’t lost control for a while and as she grew more anxious, the snow only picked up speed. Natasha said something under her breath in a language that Riley didn’t understand and she knelt in front of the now trembling girl, not caring about kneeling in the deep snow.

‘Look at me Kid, you’re ok. Just breathe.’ Natasha quietly coached her through some breathing exercises for a few minutes and she was pleased to see that the snow had lessened considerably and was back to falling lightly.

‘Kid…Riley? You ok?’ After a few more minutes of deep breathing, Riley blinked away her tears and managed to calm herself down, pleased that she had avoided a full blown meltdown and possible panic attack.

‘I…I’m sorry.’ She said immediately, not missing the frown that crossed Natasha’s face. ‘What are you sorry for?’

‘For the…the snow.’ She said in confusion, not understanding why Natasha was asking that. She always had to apologise for her powers in her foster home.

‘Don’t be silly. You can’t help that. I think it’s pretty cool actually. Is it just snow or can you control other things?’ Riley blinked stupidly. ‘Cool? You’re joking right? Aren’t you scared?’ Natasha shook her head. ‘It’s a bit unpredictable, but no, I’m not scared of you. I can see that these powers terrify you and that you haven’t quite mastered how to control them yet, but if you wanted to hurt me, then you could have done.’ She said simply, not missing the look of surprise that ghosted Riley’s face.

Natasha stood up and sat back down on the bench, before looking seriously at Riley.

‘Well, you clearly don’t want to talk about what happened that made you want to run away and that’s fine. I wouldn’t want to spill all my deepest darkest secrets to a perfect stranger either, superhero or not. I am going to give you two options.’ Riley nodded, resigned to the fact that whether she liked it or not, this woman was an Avenger and more importantly, she could make sure that Riley was put back in the system, so she listened.

‘Option 1. I take you to the police station, and you come willingly, whilst they find your family or your foster family and you go back with them…’ Riley all but screamed internally, fear in her eyes. ‘Please…please no. I…I can’t…not them…’ The snow started to pick up again and Natasha noticed this and the fact that there had been something serious that had clearly happened with her past family, so she kept talking, in an effort to calm the situation down, before Riley could work herself up further.

‘Option 2.’ Natasha continued. ‘-you come back to the Avengers Compound with me, no strings attached, until we figure something out. You won’t be going with anyone, who we deem as unsuitable for you – that includes your previous family. Either way, you aren’t staying on the streets anymore. CPS and the police will be informed, as otherwise it would be kidnapping, however, nobody is going to take you away, if you do not want. We will help you.’ Riley immediately looked up from her hands and blinked in shock.

‘Th…the Avengers C…Compound? Really?’ Natasha nodded and stood up, offering a hand to the girl, who paused and looked at her hesitantly.

‘Why would you want to help me like that? Why aren’t you just calling the police to deal with me?’ Natasha looked at her, with an emotion that Riley couldn’t figure out. ‘No kid, should have to live on the streets, or have to live in fear of being hurt or figuring out how not to starve everyday, no matter who they are.’ Natasha paused and then continued. 

‘You are a special kid and you also deserve the chance to learn how to use your powers, without judgement, I have friends that can help with that and who can make sure you get placed in a happy home. You probably wouldn’t get a better opportunity than this. Riley? I need you to make a decision.’ Riley had been sitting in a state of shock, relief, trepidation and hopefulness; she could finally be off the streets and maybe get placed with another foster family. The Avengers wouldn’t let anyone bad take her…she could be happy again…

‘Can…can I go with you?’ She asked tentatively and Natasha gave her a kind smile and offered her a hand again, which she took.

‘Of course. Let’s go, kiddo.’ Riley hoisted her bag onto her back and followed Natasha, feeling like maybe things were finally looking up.


	2. Powers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony meets Riley and she learns something new about her powers.

‘Sorry about having to walk back on foot. I like to escape from the Compound every now and then and a walk into the city usually helps me to clear my mind. We aren’t too far, probably about a twenty minute or so walk. I could call a cab if you’d prefer?’ Natasha asked, as they both walked out of Central Park and Riley shrugged.

‘It’s fine. I’m used to walking a lot anyway.’ Natasha nodded and they both walked in silence for a few minutes, until they passed a hotdog stand and Riley stopped with a small gasp, looking at Natasha incredulously.

‘Everything ok?’ Natasha asked, turning to look at the girl, who had her mouth open. ‘It was you! You bought me a hotdog last week! I only had a $20 note and the guy wanted exact change, so you bought me one!’ Natasha thought back and then she remembered; she smiled kindly to Riley, who smiled back, albeit still slightly shocked. 

‘That, I did. I had some spare change so I thought why not an…hey – careful!’ Natasha put an arm out in front of Riley, who was about to trip over a pothole. ‘Oh! Thanks…sorry Natasha.’ 

‘-I’m not telling you off Kid, just stay vigilant.’ 

‘What’s vigalant mean?’ 

‘Vigilant.’ Natasha corrected, gesturing around her. ‘It means to stay alert and watchful of your surroundings and in general for any danger.’ Riley nodded and they continued to walk in a relative comfortable silence, until they arrived at the entrance to the Avengers Compound. Natasha had noticed that Riley had slowed down considerably and that the snow around them, had started to pick up slightly, whereas the snow from a little ways away, was still light, so Natasha knew that Riley’s powers were affected by her emotions. 

Natasha had never really dealt with children before, let alone offered to take one in off the streets…so she found herself at a bit of a loss of what to do with regards to Riley, so she went with her instincts. 

‘Look Kid. It’s going to be fine. I’ve already texted everyone to let them know about…the situation.’ Riley’s eyes were fixed on the dark silhouette of the Compound in the near distance, but she turned to Natasha and nodded. Natasha noticed that the girl seemed to put up a front of fake confidence when she was nervous or scared, something that the assassin could relate to.

‘Come on then.’ Not mentioning that the snow was still worse than it had been, Natasha led the way to the front gate and then to the front door and into the hallway, with Riley following in her wake. 

_ ‘Welcome back Agent Romanoff. Boss has been alerted of your presence.’  _ Riley looked up at the ceiling, startled.

‘Cheers Fri.’ Natasha smirked at the girl, who was looking at the ceiling with trepidation. Putting a comforting hand on her shoulder, Natasha gave her a kind smile. 

‘That’s Friday, Tony Stark’s AI - she basically looks after us all and controls the security system. If you need any help or to get any of us, then just ask Friday and she’ll inform us.’ Riley nodded and allowed Natasha to lead her into the next room.

Opening the door, Natasha and Riley came face to face with Tony Stark, who was walking towards them, a confused but kind smile on his face. They were clearly in an office…and by the looks of all the Ironman pictures on the walls and the large Ironman portrait by the fireplace, they were in Tony’s office.

‘You’re Ironman!’ Riley said excitedly, as she saw him. Tony nodded slowly and then addressed Natasha. ‘So…Nat. I got a text from you, saying that you were bringing a guest to stay here for a bit and that you wanted to talk to me about said guest. Do you want to explain to me, why there’s a little kid here?’ Riley frowned at being called a little kid, but she bit her tongue, and Natasha started talking. 

‘Her name is Riley. I went for a walk and I found her on the streets, almost being assaulted by a group of arseholes. I dealt with the group and then invited her to stay here for a bit, she’ll stay on my floor of course. …she isn’t like other children. There was an incident with her previous family that Riley is reluctant to talk about, so I figured that it would be better for her to stay here, rather than to be quizzed by the police and dumped in the system or forced back into an unhealthy home situation.’ Tony raised an eyebrow at Riley, who squirmed under his gaze and then he turned back to Natasha and leaned in closer to her, however, Riley still heard every word.

‘Did you ever think that maybe she had just pissed her parents off and they’d said get out in the heat of the moment?’ Natasha glared at him. ‘Obviously. However, apparently, she’s been on the streets for over a month. A concerned family would have found her by now and she would have gone back by now if it wasn’t serious. Anyway, whenever I brought it up, she got very…reluctant to discuss it, so there was clearly something else going on.’ Riley was kind of annoyed that they were talking about her, straight in front of her, but she was secretly grateful to Natasha for keeping her earlier meltdown private. 

‘What did you mean, about her not being like other kids?’ Tony asked, glancing at Riley again who looked back shyly. Natasha turned to the girl and looked at her questioningly. ‘Would you like to tell him, or would you like me to? He needs to know, as you’ll be living here, until we figure something out.’ Riley tilted her head and then replied. ‘Can I just show you?’ Natasha looked taken aback for a second and almost hesitant, whilst Tony had materialised a gauntlet on his hand, hidden behind his back, so as not to scare Riley, just in case he needed to intervene. 

‘Sure kid. Do you need some snow or something?’ Riley shook her head and giggled. ‘No! Oh…I forgot to tell you, it isn’t just snow I can control! Look.’ Waving her hands in a circular motion, Riley made the dull fire, in the fireplace in the room, grow bigger and engulf two entire logs of wood. She then looked around and saw a glass of water on the office table and made the water leap out of it and she created a pattern of swirls in the air, before, somewhat clumsily, placing most of the water back in the cup – the rest accidentally splashed onto the office desk. 

‘Oops…sorry, Mr Stark.’ Tony was looking at Riley with a shocked expression and he hastily regained his composure, when Riley addressed him. 

‘Wow…ok, that’s new. It’s fine…it was just a bit of water, don’t worry about it…Is there…anything else that you can do?’ Riley nodded and then pointed out of the office window. 

‘The wind and the ground.’ She said simply. Natasha was looking at the girl with a contemplating expression. ‘The elements.’ She said simply. Riley looked at her in confusion, whilst Tony nodded in agreement. ‘Elements like in science?’

Natasha chuckled and shook her head. ‘No. There are four elements that are said to represent the world and nature. They are Fire…’ Natasha pointed to the fire that was now happily crackling in the fireplace. ‘…Water – which includes snow.’ She said playfully at Riley, who smiled and continued to listen to her with an interested expression on her face. ‘…and the other two are Air and the Earth.’ Tony nodded and opened a nearby window. ‘Can you try and make a small crack in the pavement, or make it a bit windy, just so we know if our theory is correct?’ Riley nodded, pointed her hand towards the window and scrunched up her face, when all of a sudden there was a very large crack in the pavement and at the same time, a large gust of wind hit the open window so hard that it shuddered slightly under the pressure. 

‘Well…a large crack is good too…’ Tony smirked in amusement and closed the window, then faltered at Riley’s anxious expression. ‘Don’t worry, you did good kid.’ Natasha put a hand on Riley’s shoulders and smiled fondly when the girl yawned and rubbed her eyes. 

‘Thanks, Mr Stark a…and thanks for letting me stay here for a bit. You’re really cool.’ Tony smiled and offered his hand to Riley, who shook it shyly. ‘Call me Tony. Your name is Riley, right?’ The girl nodded and Tony gave her a kind smile. ‘Well then, now that we are properly acquainted, Riley, I think we could all use a good night’s sleep. Natasha will show you where you can stay, until we figure stuff out.’ Riley nodded again and waved, as Natasha thanked Tony and led her out of the office, into an elevator and up to floor 7. 


	3. A change of scene

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley starts to trust Natasha.

‘Listen. I know you’ve just eaten and you’re tired, but you have to have a bath.’ Riley crossed her arms and shook her head. Natasha had brought the girl up to her personal floor and had cooked her a bland meal of chicken and rice, as she wasn’t used to eating bigger portions of more complicated food. Riley had only picked at it, despite saying earlier that she was hungry; but Natasha could see that she was ready to drop and so didn’t mind as much. Natasha also knew that she was very dirty and was in desperate need of a bath; however Riley was adamantly refusing. ‘No, I don’t. I won’t and you can’t make me.’ Natasha stopped rooting through her chest of drawers for small enough clothes to fit Riley’s tiny frame and she looked at her seriously.

‘You are filthy, and you need a bath. The quicker you have one, the quicker you can go to sleep.’ Riley balled her fists by her sides and glared at Natasha, who stood up, spare clothes in her hands, and glared straight back at her. 

‘No.’ 

‘Why not? Don’t you want to be clean?’ Riley nodded. ‘Yes, but I don’t want a bath. I want a shower.’ Natasha sighed. ‘Riley, there’s about a million buttons to work the shower – and I’d have to show you how to work it – and you won’t be able to reach the buttons anyway and on top of that, the shower isn’t working properly – I haven’t gotten around to get Tony to fix it. It’s late, so a bath will have to do. I’m not going round the other floors to find a shower that’s not in use – it’s too late, everyone will be asleep or busy. Come on. I’ll wait outside, once you’re in the tub.’

‘I won’t.’ 

Natasha pursed her lips and tried to keep her patience, as the young girl scowled at her. Putting the clothes into a pile in the bathroom, Natasha raised an eyebrow and pointed into the ensuite bathroom, where steam was already pouring out of it – as she had already run Riley a bath. ‘We can do this the easy way or the hard way. Either you go in, get undressed and have a bath yourself, or I will assist you. Either way, you will be clean in the next half an hour.’ Riley scowled again and stamped her foot. She knew it was childish, but Natasha had no idea why she didn’t want to have a bath and she didn’t want to tell her. 

‘Hard way it is then.’ In a split second, Natasha had easily picked Riley up and took her into the bathroom, as the girl started screaming and shouting.  
‘NO! I WON’T! I WON’T! LEAVE ME ALONE!’ Closing the bathroom door, so Riley couldn’t escape, Natasha looked at the angry girl and felt herself losing patience. She knew that children hated baths and things, but this was ridiculous. 

‘Riley. Enough. It’s a bath, not a pit of snakes. You will be clean, as by the look and the smell of you, you haven’t had a proper wash in quite a while. Now. Get undressed and into the tub, or I will assist you. Last chance.’ There was a perfectly good reason why Riley didn’t want a bath and as she stared across the bathroom into the full bubble bath, the memory came flooding back and she started to panic.

‘N…no! Please! I’ll…I’ll be good! I…I won’t do it a…again!’ Natasha was startled by the sudden change in Riley and she found herself at a loss of what to do.  
‘Kid?’ Riley flung herself at the door of the bathroom, scrambling anxiously at the handle, which Natasha had clicked into place.  
‘LET ME OUT!’  
‘Hey, hey! It’s alright. It’s just a bath. Nothing bad will…’ Natasha trailed off and then realisation kicked in. Riley wasn’t being a bratty little Kid, she was scared and when she got scared, she got angry. Natasha crossed the room in a few strides and gently but firmly, put her hands over Riley’s shoulders, moving her away from the door.  
‘Talk to me, kid. What’s got you so scared, hmm?’ Riley felt her bottom lip trembling and she bit it hard enough to draw blood; Natasha gently pulled her lip away from her teeth and gave her a reassuring smile. 

Could Riley trust her? 

She had nothing left to lose, so she sniffed, took a deep breath and gestured to the bath. ‘I…I’m an orphan.’ Natasha nodded, in encouragement for her to continue. ‘I always was in a care home…until I got a foster family…One d…day I had a bath, and I was making some patterns in the water with my powers…but I lost control and soaked the bathroom…an…and as punishment…they held me under…under the water. I… I couldn’t breathe…I haven’t had a bath since then, I’ve been showering at the local swimming pool...guess I’m just scared it’ll happen again.’ Natasha inhaled sharply. She had expected abuse of some kind, but she never thought it was to that extent. 

‘Shit. I had no idea, kid. You should have told me earlier. That will never happen again. I promise.’ Riley nodded and sniffed. ‘I…I’m sorry.’ Natasha shook her head, ‘don’t be. It’s ok. I should have been more understanding as to why you didn’t want a bath – I thought you were just being a bratty kid.’ Riley smiled slightly, as Natasha tweaked her nose playfully.

‘You do still need to wash though, I’m afraid. I guess I could ring around and see if there’s a bathroom with a shower that’s fr…’  
‘No, it’s ok. I…I’ll have a bath.’ Natasha looked at the little girl somewhat surprised and also proud of her courage. ‘Really? I don’t mind seeing if anywhere is free.’ Riley shook her head. ‘I need to…to get over my fear a…and I have missed having a bath anyway.’ Natasha nodded and unlocked the door. ‘I’ll be right out here, ok? There’s a towel over there and your makeshift pajamas are next to them.’ Riley didn’t move and Natasha waited patiently, as the little girl looked towards the bubble bath and then at Natasha, before asking quietly. 

‘Would…would you stay with me?’ Natasha nodded in understanding and closed the bathroom door. Natasha didn’t know if she was overstepping, but the girl was struggling to get her dirty clothes off, that were basically stuck to her and Natasha grimaced at the state of her hair, all knotty and coated in both dirt and general grime.

‘Do you want any help, or?’ Riley looked up from attempting to take her hoodie off and nodded sheepishly.

‘Yes, please.’ Natasha then helped Riley to peel her dirty clothes off and helped her to step into the tub. ‘There’s soap here and there is some shampoo. Make sure you get as much of that dirt off as you can, ok?’ Riley nodded and smiled as her powers immediately made the bubbles float up into the air and around her. 

Natasha smirked at the sight and then busied herself with reorganising some bottles on a shelf. It was a short time later, as Natasha was busy folding and putting some towels away, when a small voice asked, ‘Natasha? I can’t wash my hair, it’s all stuck together and it hurts.’ 

Looking around at Riley, who was currently battling with a large knot in her hair, Natasha swiftly made her way over and knelt down by the tub, before reaching for a comb and the shampoo. She noticed that most of the bubbles had gone, besides the ones that were floating in the air and that the water had turned a murky shade of brown. She grimaced at the sight of the child’s body. Riley was much too thin and there were bruises all over her – probably from sleeping on the ground.  
‘Do you want some help?’ The girl nodded and hugged her knees to her chest, as Natasha started to comb through the knots with her fingers.

‘Have you actually washed your hair since you left your home?! It’s like cement, kid. I might have to chop it all off.’ Natasha said, tugging on a stubborn knot, as Riley inhaled sharply and turned around to look at her. ‘Really?! Please don’t chop all my hair off – isn’t there anything that yo…’  
‘-Kid, I’m joking. I’m not going to chop all your hair off, relax. I just need my special comb.’  
She picked up a comb from the side of the bathtub, before combing her hair, being as gentle as she could. When all the knots were out, Natasha then lathered her hands in the shampoo and made sure to get rid of all the dirt, whilst rinsing the child’s hair; slightly surprised to see that it wasn’t a light brown as she thought, but a dirty blonde colour. 

‘All done. Have you washed yourself?’ Riley nodded and mumbled a thank you, before allowing the bubbles around them to pop, which made Natasha smile slightly.  
‘You ready to get out?’ Riley nodded and took Natasha’s hand to get out, before stepping out of the bath and giggling as Natasha wrapped her up in a big fluffy towel.  
‘Feel better? You look like a giant happy burrito.’ She said playfully, and Riley nodded happily, then smiled as Natasha started to dry her hair for her. ‘Thank you for helping me.’ Riley said softly, as Natasha handed her a top and some fabric shorts – which she had found as makeshift pajamas for her.  
‘No worries. I’m pleased that you faced your fear and had a bath. Come on then, get dressed and meet me in the bedroom when you’re done.’ Natasha then walked out of the bathroom and into her room, making up the bed for Riley, who after a few minutes walked out of the bathroom, yawning widely. Natasha smiled fondly at the girl, who looked much happier and she gestured to the made up bed.

‘Hop in kiddo.’ Riley’s eyes lit up, as she realised that she was going to actually sleep in a real bed and not on the floor. She all but jumped into the bed, sighing in contentment, then she looked up at Natasha, as she pulled the comforter over her. ‘But…isn’t this your room? Where will you sleep?’ Natasha shrugged nonchalantly. ‘I’ll take the couch in the living room, until we figure something out. It’s fine, I’ve slept on a lot worse.’ Riley nodded tiredly and yawned again. 

‘Thanks f’r everyth’ng. I’m glad you sav’d me and I met y…you. You’re…really kind and n’ce.’ Riley slurred tiredly, yawning - her eyes fluttering closed, as Natasha blinked, processing what the child had just said. She had been called a lot of things in her life, but she had never been referred to as ‘nice’ and ‘kind.’ Seemingly at a loss for words, Natasha turned on the bedside lamp and dimmed it slightly, casting a warm glow around the room, as Friday turned the main lights off. 

‘No problem…urm, I’ll see you in the morning. Sleep well Riley.’ The young girl was already fast asleep, chest rising and falling rhythmically, and Natasha smiled fondly at her, before lightly stroking her hair and walking out of the room, leaving the door propped open slightly; she had a lot to talk to the rest of the team about, before Riley woke up.


	4. What have you gotten yourself into, Romanoff?!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha has an interesting night, trying to get Riley to sleep, when she wakes up after a nightmare.
> 
> ***Story that Natasha reads is called Princess Frog - and is a Russian fairytale***

‘What have you gotten yourself into this time Romanoff?’ Natasha muttered, reading yet another blog about parenthood.

Earlier, after she had put Riley to bed, there was a team meeting and Natasha and Tony had informed everybody about Riley and the situation.

Tony and his lawyers had then rung both the police and CPS, however, there was nobody under the name of Riley Jones as filed missing in the past few months. The Police had then contacted the foster family who had taken Riley in – as apparently she was an orphan, according to Friday and the CPS, and after a bit of digging, they found out that the home address that Riley had supposedly run away from, was completely unoccupied. Natasha was informed of course and had reluctantly accepted to become Riley’s temporary guardian, so she didn’t have to be thrown into the system, however as soon as she had accepted and then gone to her bedroom, she had realised just how much of a hole she had dug for herself.

She had no idea how to take care of a just turned 11 year old, who by the looks of things had supposedly been abused – Natasha suspected that there was more to it though; and she didn’t know how to help her with her powers. Being brought up to be trained as an assassin, didn’t really prepare you for the world of parenting and Natasha was currently scrolling through article after article about how to parent and how not to parent. Most of it seemed to be logical, like don’t like them eat sugar all the time, have a routine, a good sleep schedule and make sure they’re educated; but then there was the harder stuff. What to do when they had questions about boys, or nightmares, or even if they were ill. Then there was punishment, what was acceptable and what would work? Surely grounding her wouldn’t do much, as she was used to being on her own and wouldn’t be missing any friends or anything; however Natasha also figured that she couldn’t just threaten to stab Riley or tell her to fuck off if she annoyed her, like she always did with Clint and the Avengers.

Sighing, Natasha closed the article she was currently browsing and ran a hand through her hair. It was 3am, however, she didn’t feel tired at all. Looking around the empty living room and sitting up on her makeshift bed on the couch, Natasha lazily flicked on the TV and started watching a random programme about crime and mystery. After a while, Natasha felt herself begin to doze off and she fell asleep. Sometime later, all of a sudden, there was a shuffling sound, coming from the fire-escape. Immediately awake, her hand inching towards a blade that she kept under her pillow, Natasha stayed laid down silently and listened, as the shuffling grew in volume and then stopped suddenly as it reached the kitchen door – which opened and closed and then there was silence again.

Slowly, Natasha peered over the side of the couch and frowned as she saw nothing but the darkness coming from the kitchen. None of the team would come downstairs using the fire-escape, which meant that it was an intruder – strange how the alarms hadn’t gone off though. Maybe it was a skilled thief or a spy…whoever it was, Natasha didn’t care; she knew it was only one person, if the light shuffling was anything to go by. She stealthily grabbed her knife and snuck to the kitchen door, before wiggling the door handle slowly and gently pushed it open, not making a sound. She glanced inside, squinting against the darkness of the kitchen, looking for the intruder. Taking a step, she walked inside and then took another step…before she almost tripped up over something that screamed.

‘ARGH!’

Holding onto the kitchen counter for balance, Natasha glanced at the spot she had just bumped into, seeing nothing but the darkness. ‘What the fuck?! Friday – lights!’ The kitchen lights came on instantly and Natasha came face to face with Riley, who looked petrified; she was curled up on the kitchen floor under a blanket, holding a pillow and she was breathing heavily.

‘What the f…I mean, what are you doing here?! I thought there was someone dangerous sneaking about! Why are you sneaking around in the kitchen on the floor and not in bed?’ Riley’s bottom lip wobbled, as she looked at Natasha and then at the knife she was holding, and she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, before shrugging and looking at the floor, biting her lip.

‘Riley?’ The little girl refused to make eye contact, but Natasha could see that she was trembling slightly. Clearly she didn’t want to talk, however, Natasha had an idea, as Riley looked upset, so she busied herself with the kettle and got out two cups from the cupboard, along with a tin of brown powder.

‘When I can’t sleep, or if I have a bad dream…’ Riley looked up slightly at the mention of the latter and then looked back to the floor – Natasha noticed of course and continued talking, ‘-I find that a mug of my special hot chocolate works wonders. Do you want some?’ Nodding, Riley kept her eyes on the floor, but allowed Natasha to place a steaming mug into her hands. Sniffing slightly, Riley allowed the scent of the hot chocolate to soothe her anxiety slightly and she sipped it tentatively.

‘Good?’ Natasha asked, drinking her own and raising an eyebrow at the girl who nodded and mumbled a ‘yes, thank you’. Gesturing to the living room, Natasha led Riley onto the couch – where her makeshift bed was and she placed their mugs onto the coffee table and turned the TV on quietly as light background noise.

‘Wanna talk about why you were trying to sleep on the kitchen floor?’

‘No.’

‘Why are you awake then?’

‘I always wake up at this time.’ She lied easily, but remembering how quickly she fell asleep earlier and how exhausted she still looked, Natasha knew that that was a lie and she raised her eyebrow.

‘We both know that that is a lie…’ Blushing lightly at being found out, Riley shrugged and stared determinedly at her slipper clad feet. ‘I don’t have to tell you anything, I barely know you.’ The girl responded shortly, looking away from Natasha.

‘That makes sense. I am basically a stranger to you, however, at the minute, I’m all you’ve got; but if you don’t want to tell me why you’re awake or were camping out in the kitchen, then that’s fine.’ Natasha agreed nonchalantly, flicking through the channels on the TV.

‘You’re not going to make me talk?’ Riley asked sceptically, reaching out and grasping her mug of hot chocolate tightly.

‘Mmm hmm. I want you to be able to confide in me, but that also means that lying about stuff, isn’t acceptable. If you don’t want to tell me something, then just say that, don’t lie.’ She reprimanded softly but firmly and Riley nodded, having the decency to look ashamed in herself and Natasha took pity on her, as she looked close to tears again, not to mention that she looked absolutely exhausted.

Talking in a voice that she rarely used, Natasha put a hand on her shoulder, in what she hoped was a comforting manner. ‘Talking does help you know. I’m a very good listener.’ Visibly battling with something, Riley opened and closed her mouth a few times, as if willing herself to say something. Natasha didn’t say anything else, she just allowed the girl to have as much time as she needed.

‘I couldn’t sleep.’

‘I gathered that. Want to tell me why? You fell asleep pretty quickly earlier.’ Natasha said, raising an eyebrow in question, as Riley bit her lip again.

‘I…I had a bad dream and…I got scared…there was a shadow.’ Frowning, Natasha didn’t know what to say. She decided not to pry but to allow Riley to open up to her as much or as little as she wanted.

‘A shadow?’ Natasha repeated, sipping her drink, as Riley nodded.

‘My…my dream was about…um…it doesn’t matter actually. But, it was like when I woke up, it was still happening again – I thought the shadow was him…I mean, I thought it looked like someone from my dream.’ She amended quickly and Natasha made a mental note that she was scared of somebody from her past, a man by the sounds of things and she wondered if it was her foster father – but she filed that away for a conversation another time, not wanting Riley to isolate herself from her, if it was only a bad dream about a random stranger.

‘Sounds pretty scary.’ Natasha agreed, and Riley nodded. ‘So, how come you were camping out in the dark kitchen then?’ Blushing slightly, Riley pointed to the floor. ‘Your bed was too soft, the kitchen floor isn’t and I can’t see over the bed, but I can see everything from the floor…kind of anyway…’ She said, shrugging, but Natasha could see that her hands were still trembling slightly around her mug and then realisation hit her.

‘You’ve been sleeping on the floor on the streets for a while and you like to be able to see everything around you, incase of any danger.’ She stated and Riley nodded.

‘Well you’ve gotten used to sleeping on hard surfaces, so that’s to be expected. I should have thought of that. Why didn’t you tell me? We could have figured something out.’ Natasha saw that Riley was still trembling as she drank her hot chocolate and she felt another surge of pity for her.

‘No…I…it’s my fault. I wanted to sleep in a bed…really I did! But…when I woke up, the bed was too soft and my dream made me scared…I’m sorry.’ Natasha gave her a sympathetic smile and shook her head. Riley finished her hot chocolate and looked a bit more relaxed which made Natasha feel a bit better.

‘Don’t worry about it Kid. I should have realised. I do have an idea though. It won’t stop the nightmares, but it might help with your sleeping. Follow me.’ Riley furrowed her eyebrows and followed Natasha, as the assassin led her through a few different doors and back onto her floor, but to a locked room at the end. Typing a code into the side of the handle, the door flicked open and Natasha gestured for Riley to walk inside.

‘Fri, lights.’ The lights instantly came on and Riley was surprised to see a room that looked like a movie room – a large TV and couch were basically all that was in it, apart from a large bookcase, full of books and DVD’s.

‘This is my film room. Obviously there’s a bigger one downstairs that we all use, but I like having a private one, as sometimes I don’t want the company of others. Anyway, I didn’t bring you in here to watch TV, you can sleep here. The couch is a lot less comfortable than a bed, but it should be better for you, because…it turns into a type of bed.’ Natasha then pressed a button on the side of the couch and it tilted, before reclining to reveal a sort of couch bed, that would easily accommodate a fully grown adult, let alone a child. It didn’t look as comfortable as a bed, and Natasha had dealt with back ache from it first hand when she fell asleep on it, but if it could help the Kid, then she didn’t see the problem. Riley couldn’t help a small smile appear on her face, as Natasha made a point of taking most of the cushions off, apart from one large comforter and pillow.

‘Hop in.’ Riley obediently did as requested and she couldn’t help smiling in relief as Natasha pulled the comforter over her.

‘How’s that?’

‘Better…a lot better. Thank you, Natasha.’ Riley said yawning. Natasha nodded and went to turn on a lamp near the bookcase, which cast a soft glow around the room. Riley noticed that there wasn’t really anything that could cast shadows in this room, and she wondered if that was another reason why Natasha had picked this room for her; but her nightmare came flooding back to her at the thought of the shadows and she bit her lip, contemplating something.

‘Night Kid.’ Reaching for the door, Natasha was about to leave, when a small voice spoke up.

‘Natasha?’

‘Hmm?’

‘Could you…would you stay…just until I fall asleep? Please…incase I have a…another bad dream?’

Taken a bit off guard, Natasha thought for a moment and then nodded. ‘Um…yeah, sure.’ Standing awkwardly by the door, Natasha decided to sit down on the other side of the couch, as Riley watched her, her eyes blinking tiredly. The assassin noticed that the girl seemed to be fighting going back to sleep, even though she looked exhausted – Natasha concluded that it was obviously because she was scared of having another nightmare, and she inwardly swore that she didn’t finish the article about comforting kids after bad dreams. She didn’t really know what to do to comfort her, so she just went with her instincts.

‘You have to close your eyes to go to sleep.’ Natasha said pointedly and Riley immediately shut her eyes. After a while of shuffling and sighing, Natasha was getting bored. _Could she slip the Kid a sleeping pill? No. That was probably frowned upon. Why wouldn’t she sleep? She was certainly tired enough…maybe she was overtired – that was something that happened to kids… How could she get her to sleep?_

‘I can’t go to sleep, but I’m really tired! This hasn’t happened before!’ Riley said, sitting up and in frustration throwing a fist down on the comforter in annoyance at herself. Natasha saw tears form in her eyes and she desperately racked her brain to try and come up with a solution that wouldn’t result in a crying episode – as she didn’t want to deal with that at 4am. The Kid was definitely over tired. Then, Natasha thought of an idea that had the potential to work and she felt like punching herself in the face for not trying it straight away, she just hoped that Riley wouldn’t think it was babyish.

‘Lie down and close your eyes.’

‘But…’

‘-No buts. Come on.’ Riley huffed, but complied and Natasha quickly walked over to the bookcase and picked an old book off of it, then she came back to the couch and leant back slightly, before speaking in what she hoped was a soothing tone.

_‘Long, long ago, in days of yore, there lived a king who had three sons, all of them grown to manhood…’_

‘What are you doing?’ Riley asked quietly, looking up at Natasha through tired eyes.

‘Training for the Olympics.’ The assassin deadpanned and Riley giggled.

‘I’m reading you a Russian story. Now, close your eyes and try to imagine what I’m saying.’ Riley did so, and Natasha continued her story, resigning herself to having to put on pretend voices for the characters. What had she gotten herself into?

_‘One day the king called them to him and said, "My sons. let each of you make a bow for himself and shoot an arrow. The maiden who brings your arrow back will be your bride; and he whose arrow is not returned will stay unwed."’_ Natasha glanced down at Riley, who was still struggling to sleep by the way her face was scrunched up slightly, but she smirked as the little girl yawned and subconsciously rubbed her eyes with her fist. Turning the page, Natasha continued reading.

_‘The eldest son shot an arrow and a prince's daughter brought it back. The middle son loosed an arrow and a general's daughter brought it back. But young Prince Ivan's arrow fell into a marsh and was brought back by a frog holding it between her teeth. The first two brothers were joyful and happy, but Prince Ivan was downcast and cried: "How can I live with a frog? Marrying is for a lifetime, it isn't like wading a stream or crossing a field!" He wept and wept but there was nothing for it: he had to marry the frog…’ _

Natasha once again glanced over at Riley and sighed in relief when she saw that the girl was fast asleep, her chest rising and falling rhythmically. Quietly, Natasha got up and pulled the comforter a little bit firmer around the girl, so that it wouldn’t fall off – after all, it was just so she wouldn’t get ill, Natasha definitely was not tucking her in or anything…

Leaving the lamp on, Natasha quietly left the door slightly ajar and walked back into her own bedroom and collapsed in a heap on her bed.

_What had she gotten herself into?!_


	5. Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley struggles to adjust to her first day with Natasha and a large bit of news makes her scared.

‘Well, it’s either slightly mouldy poptarts – courtesy of Thor; a very large Romanian apple strudel or a super-solider shake that will probably make you barf…how can we not have anything normal for a Kid’s breakfast?’ Natasha muttered to herself, as she continued rummaging through the cupboards. Surprisingly they didn’t have very many suitable foods for an 11 year old and she was getting frustrated.

‘Ah ha!’ Triumphantly, Natasha pulled out a carton of eggs from the lower shelf of a cupboard and she smiled at Riley, who was busy yawning.

‘How do you like your eggs?’

***

‘Kid, you gotta eat more than that.’ Pouring herself a coffee, Natasha raised an eyebrow at Riley, who was still yet to eat more than half of her scrambled eggs. 

‘Not hungry.’ 

‘That’s exactly what you said last night, although, when I gave you that sandwich in the park, you looked starving. What gives?’ Riley didn’t say anything and just stared at the plate in front of her, not meeting Natasha’s eyes. That morning, Natasha had decided to bring Riley down to the communal areas and they were currently sat in the kitchen, whilst the other members of the team popped in occasionally to grab some breakfast and introduce themselves. Natasha had noticed that Riley had been incredibly quiet so far that morning and she didn’t really know how to handle her. 

‘Riley, you’re not leaving this table until you eat some more of that. You must be starving. You hardly ate anything last night either.’ 

‘I’m just not feeling well and I…I don’t really like eggs by themselves.’ Natasha raised an eyebrow and moved towards the girl, before putting the back of her hand to her forehead. ‘You don’t have a temperature. Why didn’t you tell me that you don’t like eggs?’ Riley shrugged and sighed. ‘My tummy just feels a bit funny. I didn’t want to be a bother…I tried to eat them, but they’re yucky. I’m sorry.’ Natasha sighed and nodded. ‘I didn’t really give you much of an option, did I? How about we go out for breakfast? Is there anything you fancy? Are you allergic to anything?’ Riley shook her head sheepishly and then replied, ‘No, but I’ve never really gone out for breakfast or…for any meal before…’ Humming in response, Natasha stood up and gave her a kind smile.

‘Pancakes it is then. Come on, I know a great place we could go. I’ll show you what you can wear and then we’ll go out for some breakfast, ok?’ Despite her stomach ache, which had turned into a dull throbbing pain, Riley smiled and followed Natasha as she led them both upstairs. 

Half an hour or so later, Natasha and Riley were sat opposite each other in a small café, with a small plate of pancakes each, a bowl of fruit and milkshakes. 

‘How are the pancakes?’ Natasha asked Riley, smirking. She didn’t really need a response, as by the looks of the syrupy faced girl, who looked very happy, she was enjoying her breakfast. 

‘-ish…go’d!’ Riley said, shovelling more pancakes into her mouth and Natasha chuckled, despite the bad table manners. 

‘Good. Well, I figured that we could get to know each other a bit better, seeing as I’m officially your temporary guardian for the foreseeable future.’ Natasha replied nonchalantly, watching Riley’s facial expression change from a relaxed one, into one of shock and she started choking on her mouthful of pancake. Natasha instantly moved beside her and patted her back firmly, as the girl gasped for breath. Once she regained her breathing to an extent as her eyes watered, Natasha poured her a glass of water and forced her to sip at it slowly, until she was able to breath normally again. 

‘I mean, I was hoping for a…a positive reaction of sorts, not an almost death by pancakes.’ Natasha joked lightly, moving back to her own seat, as Riley just stared at her. 

‘You’re…you’re going to be my…my guardian?!’ She all but squeaked and Natasha nodded, idly stirring her milkshake with her straw. 

‘But…but…why?! I thought… you were going to find me…a foster family?’ 

Natasha hummed and tilted her head in thought, as she replied. ‘We notified the Police and CPS as I said we would; however they have no record of you or your previous family. It appears that all traces of you and your family, have been wiped. I have my suspicions about this, but that isn’t for you to worry about. So, basically, you essentially belong to the state. They gave me the option of putting you into the system or of taking you in temporarily whilst they investigate the case with Tony and mine’s help too. So, we figured that you’d be better off with us, as we can help with your powers too – you could even start training with us, when you get good enough. Questions?’ Riley just blinked and opened and closed her mouth a few times, before suddenly standing up, taking Natasha slightly by surprise. ‘-bathroom…be right back.’ 

Without waiting for an answer, Riley hurried off into the back and into the ladies, before starting to panic. 

_ Natasha had been really nice to her and everything, but she didn’t want to be trained as a weapon or fight big wars with aliens like all the Avengers did. Sure, she wanted to be able to defend herself and control her powers, but she didn’t want to be trained to be a weapon, like the Avengers probably would do, right? The Avengers were always busy and that included Natasha; that meant that she would always be on her own…so why should she bother to stay? Everyone always left her, so why would this be any different? Natasha was bound to get bored of her…she thought that she would never be happy and it was stupid to believe otherwise. _

Riley blinked back angry tears and tried to control her breathing. 

_ She figured that once Natasha realised that she was such a handful, then she’d ship her off to a foster home and she didn’t want to be passed around from place to place anymore. She was better off by herself. _

Quickly scanning the bathroom for an exit, her eyes landed on a high window that looked big enough to fit through and Riley hastily climbed onto the bin and pushed it open. She hoisted herself up and slid out of the window, onto the street outside and she ran. 

***

Natasha watched as Riley hurried into the bathroom and she frowned. She probably shouldn’t have been so abrupt with how she told her, but she wasn’t really one for being soft and squishy with people whilst giving big news. After a few moments, Natasha started to get concerned that Riley hadn’t come back and she furrowed her eyebrows. 

Walking into the bathroom, Natasha instantly swore under her breath, as she saw the window wide open and the stalls unoccupied. Running out of the bathroom, she made her way outside and looked up and down the busy streets. Pulling out her phone, she hastily dialled a number and waited for the phone to pick up; sighing in relief when it did.

‘Stark? The Kid’s run off. Can you hack into the traffic cameras for me and find her? Don’t tell CPS or the Police, they’ll just scare her off more.’ 

_ ‘Fuck. Okay, yeah of course. I’ll text you when I find something. Do you want any help – I could fly over?’  _

‘No. It would cause too much attention. She couldn’t have gone far, I’ll find her; but just check the cameras. Thanks.’ 

Natasha hung up and started to run down the street, her mind focussed on finding Riley. She figured that the Kid had been squatting somewhere near Central Park, as that was where she had found her the previous day and luckily, they weren’t too far away from it. 

Running down street after street, Natasha reached the park and paused, trying to figure out if she could remember seeing any spaces that would be hidden away for a Kid to hide in without being found. Frowning, she realised that everywhere in Central Park was essentially open and viewable from any angle, however, then she remembered that Riley had said she was ‘on her way home’, whilst walking through Central Park. She had also agreed to the fact that she’d been sleeping on the ground…and had been showering in the local swimming pool. Natasha then had an idea on where Riley was. 

There wasn’t a lot of places that a Kid could hide away in on the busy streets of New York City, however, Natasha remembered somewhere, that could be exactly where Riley had been hiding for the past month.

A few minutes later, Natasha came face to face with a large abandoned warehouse, that was all boarded up. Searching intently for a way in, her eyes fell onto a set of wooden planks, that were clearly blocking entry to what supposedly was a door, and a few of them were slightly lopsided compared to the others around it. Natasha knelt down next to it and prised them open, revealing a small hole in the brickwork…big enough for a person. Hoping that she was right, she squeezed herself through and then she was on the other side. 

Looking around, she saw that she was in a large room, full of large piles of rubble that blocked the rest of the room and a very large layer of dust. Peering around the first pile of rubble, she saw the rest of the room and then saw a small set of footprints in the thick layer of dust, leading towards a very large cupboard – big enough to be considered an incredibly large wardrobe but, on its side, like a giant storage unit. A perfect hiding place for, by the looks of it, at least three grown people. Hesitantly opening the door, in-case she was wrong and was met with somebody else with a weapon, Natasha knelt down, twisted the handle and pulled it open, revealing somebody who was sat right at the back of the dark container. There was a single blanket, a very small pillow and a few old newspapers. Also, there were a few apple sized holes in the top of the storage unit and so the daylight from the cracked windows flooded through and lit up a familiar tear-streaked face, who looked up in shock at having been found.

‘Riley?’ 

At the mention of her name, the girl locked her eyes onto Natasha, and then onto the open doorway. She immediately lunged forward, out of the unit, trying to escape past the assassin – which wasn’t a great idea, as the storage unit doorway wasn’t that big and Natasha easily stood up and restrained her gently, as the child started shouting and kicking.

‘LET ME GO!’ Natasha didn’t say anything, she simply continued to restrain Riley, who was becoming more and more angry. Natasha figured that nothing she could say would calm her down until she got all of the anger out of her system – also, she didn’t really know why the girl had run away, or was so angry, as she thought that Riley was starting to be happy, being in the Compound…clearly not. 

‘LEAVE ME ALONE!’ Aiming a kick to Natasha’s side (which was easily blocked), Riley then started trying to punch and scratch her way out of the assassin’s grasp. 

‘I DON’T WANT TO GO WITH YOU! GO AWAY!’ Each sentence was met with an attempted kick to Natasha’s legs and Riley was getting more and more worked up, when each kick was blocked effortlessly. All she wanted was to make the assassin stumble, so she could escape, so Natasha would leave her alone, so she couldn’t get hurt again; she didn’t want to be alone at all, but Riley thought that everyone who she got close to, left her…so why would Natasha be any different? However, Natasha remained stoic and continued to hold the girl who was beginning to get upset at not being in control of the situation.

‘Kid, you need to try and calm down. Stop trying to kick me, it won’t work.’ Riley continued to thrash and shout, but she stopped kicking, however, she continued to ignore Natasha who was completely at a loss for what to do. Sure, she’d seen children having tantrums before and felt bad for the parents having to put up with it, but this wasn’t a tantrum, it was a breakdown. Riley was still a little kid and so she didn’t have a proper grasp on her emotions yet and when she got scared, she got angry – that much Natasha had figured out; however, the tear tracks on her face also meant that she was sad too and Natasha didn’t deal well with sympathy, so she didn’t really have an idea on how to handle the situation. All she could do, was wait until the kid ran out of fuel. 

After a while, Riley stopped shouting and thrashing, resigning herself to Natasha’s strong but gentle grip and finally the assassin felt her go limp in her arms and she finally let her go. Riley instantly crumpled to her knees, hiding her face in her hands. Natasha then froze as she saw Riley’s shoulder’s start to shake and heard the girl start to cry. She had no idea what to do, apart from go with her instincts, so that is what she did. Tentatively kneeling down opposite Riley, Natasha reached out and softly rubbed her shoulder in what she hoped was a comforting manner. 

‘Riley?’ No response, except for a few loud sobs and sniffles, as Riley tried to calm herself down to no avail. Natasha sighed and tried to figure out what she could do to help the girl calm down enough, so that she could have a conversation with her. She found herself softly humming an old Russian lullaby that she remembered hearing in the Red Room, and after a few minutes or so, she was pleased to find that Riley’s cries had finally started to calm down.

‘It’s okay to be sad.’ Natasha found herself saying, hoping to provide some comfort for Riley, who was still crying, the force of her cries making her hiccough harshly. 

‘-Everyone gets angry and sad, even superheroes. The important thing to realise though after you’ve had a bit of a meltdown, is what caused it and how you can remedy it.’ She continued nonchalantly, watching as Riley finally looked up at her with watery red rimmed eyes, looking completely miserable. Natasha offered her a kind smile and Riley bowed her head as tears streamed down her cheeks.

‘I’m…I’m sorry…’ She whispered, sniffling quietly, as Natasha nodded. ‘Do you want to tell me why you’re so angry and upset?’ Riley swiped a hand across her face, trying to get rid of the tears that continued to fall and she nodded slightly. 

‘It’s just…you’re going to leave me…’ She said sadly, blinking as more tears trickled down her cheeks, as Natasha frowned. 

‘What? Why would I leave you? I said earlier that I’m going to be your temporary guardian.’ Completely confused by this point, Natasha waited patiently for an answer from the little girl, who bit her lip and took a few shaky breaths. 

‘…because…because everyone leaves me.’ She said simply, her breath hitching as she cried silently. Natasha felt like she’d been punched in the stomach. This kid had been tossed around the system for years and finally had had a foster family – who had left her, so of course she thought that this was all too good to be true.

‘Hey, hey. I’m not going anywhere.’ Natasha said firmly, continuing to rub Riley’s shoulder, who subconsciously had started to lean into her touch, and Natasha found herself smiling fondly. 

‘…but…you’ll get fed up of me and I don’t want to fight Aliens!’ She wailed, missing the incredulous look that Natasha was giving her. ‘-And you’re so busy and I’m a pain…and you’re going to get rid of me an…’ Natasha instantly held up a hand to silence the girl and she tilted her chin upwards, so she was looking at her directly. 

‘Riley. I don’t just go around agreeing to be people’s temporary guardians. I could have easily let you be put back into the system, however, I thought and still do think that, living in the Avengers Compound will benefit you, as does the rest of the team. Yes, we are all quite busy, however, I am the least…busiest of the team, as a lot of my job just requires paperwork and the odd field mission; you’re not going to be stuck on your own every day, if that’s what you were worried about.’ Riley nodded and felt a knot in her stomach loosen slightly at the thought that she wasn’t going to be on her own anymore.

‘-Also, you’re not going to fight aliens; you’re going to be taught how to control and use your powers, so you feel confident with them. When have I ever said that we’re training you to fight aliens?!’ Natasha continued, giving the child a playful glare.

‘You said…you said I’d be training, with you all and you fight aliens!’ 

Natasha chuckled softly and then gave Riley a gentle smile. ‘Kid, we don’t just spend all our time fighting aliens. We have regular training sessions that are just to keep us in shape and so we can improve in our chosen fields: sparring, running, general work on combat, shooting and for some of us, help with powers and enhancements. We might fight aliens sometimes, but we would never train you as a weapon or anything. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. All I meant, was that when you get full control of your powers, then you could maybe train with us sometimes, like sparring, if you fancied.’ Riley sighed in relief and then she felt slightly ashamed about her sudden meltdown. 

‘...I just thought…I thought I’d be better on my own…’ She said quietly, as Natasha nodded in understanding and gave her a hand to help her stand up; she then looked at Riley seriously. 

‘I know. Listen, I get that you’ve been through a lot and that this is a big change; but running off and kicking and shouting…’ Natasha looked at Riley pointedly, who blushed. 

‘-isn’t acceptable.’ Riley nodded and shuffled awkwardly, before looking at Natasha, with tears in her eyes and a guilty feeling in her stomach. How could she have reacted like that to somebody who was trying to help her? Maybe Natasha really cared about her after all.

‘I’m really sorry Natasha.’ The assassin nodded and then she froze as Riley quickly wrapped her arms around her waist and gave her a hug. She smiled softly and rubbed the girls back, as she sniffled into her chest. 

‘I know you are. Come on, let’s get out of here.’ Riley nodded and followed Natasha out of the building.

‘How did you know that I’d be here?’ The girl wondered, as Natasha raised an eyebrow at her. 

‘I am a trained spy.’ She shrugged, as Riley furrowed her eyebrows. 

‘You know how you said earlier…I mean, I actually don’t really know much about you…um…maybe we could get to know each other a bit better now?’ Natasha smiled and nodded. 

‘Sure Kid, where do you want to go?’


	6. Talking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley and Natasha get to know each other a bit better:)

A short time later, Natasha and Riley were sat on a bench in the middle of Central Park, eating hot dogs and watching people walk past, commenting quietly on what they thought they might be doing – some of them had been very funny and others quite boring, but Natasha found herself actually enjoying spending time with the young girl.

‘-he is definitely late for work!’ Riley giggled, as a young man ran past them, with a bus ticket in his hand. Natasha smirked. ‘Yes, I think so. What about that woman though?’ Riley looked and followed Natasha’s subtle gesture to where a woman was walking her dog, she looked like she was thinking very hard about something and Riley’s eyes widened as she whispered in a secretive voice to Natasha, who looked amused at the Child’s antics. ‘She works for the FBI and she’s undercover!’ 

‘Oh, is that so?’

‘Yep! See, her dog is actually her dog called Fluffy and this is a disguise. She’s thinking about what her next mission is and how she can infaltate a…’

‘-Infiltrate.’ Natasha quietly corrected and Riley nodded. ‘-yeah, how she can infiltrate a big group of bad guys!’ Natasha chuckled and took a bite of her hotdog, as they sat in a comfortable silence for a few moments.

‘Natasha?’

‘Hmm?’

‘Do you do that?’ Natasha quirked an eyebrow at Riley, who was looking at her as seriously as an 11-year-old could. ‘Do I do what?’

‘Go undercover and infalt…infiltrate bad guys?’ Pondering on how best to describe her job to a child, Natasha nodded and decided to answer Riley’s questions as honestly as she could do, without giving too much insight to how brutal her job could be at times. 

‘Yes. It depends on the mission of course, but I have gone undercover many times. What exactly do you know about me?’ Natasha wanted to understand what Riley already knew about her job and then she would go from there. 

‘Um…that you’re an Avenger…the Black Widow...’ Natasha nodded for her to continue. ‘-and that you live in the Avengers Compound and fight Aliens and are really good at martial arts!’ Natasha smiled at how innocent Riley was – despite her confident persona and the fact that she had powers, she really was just a little Kid.

‘Yes, that’s the basics. Have you got any other questions? I promise to answer as truthfully as I can.’ Riley scrunched up her face, as if thinking very hard and then nodded. She wanted to know Natasha a bit better and she decided on a good question to get the ball rolling.

‘What’s your favourite colour and why?’ Natasha burst out laughing at the chosen question – out of all the possible questions that this Kid could have asked her and Riley looked confused, as she thought that it was a very good question.

‘What’s so funny?!’ Riley demanded, pouting, as Natasha stopped laughing at the upset look on her face and tweaked her nose playfully, smiling as the girl swatted her hand away.

‘Nothing, it’s just that nobody has ever asked me a question like that before. Let me think…my favourite colour is probably red – it’s a powerful colour. How about you?’

‘Blue because I like the ocean.’ Riley immediately answered and Natasha raised an eyebrow in question.

‘You’ve been to see the ocean before?’ The girl then blushed slightly and bit her lip. ‘Well…no…but I’ve seen pictures in books and stuff!’ Natasha nodded, trying not to laugh at how random this conversation was.

‘Anything else?’ Natasha asked, watching as Riley was clearly thinking of other questions to ask, and she found herself wanting to see what she came up with.

‘Favourite food?’

‘Avocado on toast. You?’

‘Pizza. Definitely! Favourite film?’

‘The Red Shoes – it’s a Russian film about a girl wanting to be a Ballerina. How about you?’

‘Um…I never really got to watch TV, but I did watch a bit of a film that was about a nanny who came and saved the children and made their family better…I wished that that would happen to me sometimes…’ Riley trailed off and Natasha didn’t pry, she simply said: ‘Mary Poppins. It’s a classic film. I think we have it at the Compound actually – I’m sure that Friday will be able to get it.’ Riley looked up and smiled, then she took a deep breath and asked, ‘um…what’s your favourite thing to do?’

‘For business or pleasure?’ Riley frowned.

‘Just…your favourite thing to do?’ Natasha pursed her lips in thought and then answered.

‘I mean, in general I like to read, spend time with friends, train…that sort of thing. On missions, I like to explore my surroundings if I have time, so I get to know the culture of wherever I am – undercover of course, I find it interesting. What do you like doing, when you’re not running around New York?’ She looked at Riley pointedly and the girl bit her lip and shrugged.

‘You don’t like doing anything?’ A shrug. Natasha furrowed her eyebrows and opened her mouth to try and understand what was wrong, when Riley spoke up. 

‘Did you always want to be the Black Widow?’ Natasha’s eyebrows rose in surprise at the sudden serious question and she figured that Riley just wanted to know more about her – which was fine, so she answered carefully and as honestly as she could to a child.

‘No. My upbringing decided how a lot of my life turned out; but when I realised that I was more than I was brought up to believe, I realised that the Black Widow could be used for good and so I changed into the person that I wanted to be. I still have a lot of red in my ledger, but I’m always trying to be better.’ Riley nodded, although she didn’t completely understand her answer and the two of them sat in silence for a few moments.

‘Any other questions?’ Natasha asked, as she watched Riley finish her hotdog quietly. The girl didn’t answer for a few moments and Natasha waited patiently.

‘Why me?’ Quirking an eyebrow, Natasha turned to face Riley. 

‘What do you mean?’ Shuffling awkwardly, Riley shrugged and then bit her lip before replying quietly.

‘Why…why didn’t you just shove me into the system? Why did you want to be my temporary guardian? I didn’t ask you to do any of this and I’m sure you’ve got better things to be doing than sitting here with me. I’m not important.’ She finished sadly and Natasha sighed, before tilting Riley’s chin up. 

‘Like I said earlier, I had the option to put you into the system or for you to stay with us. I wanted you to stay with us, so you can learn how to control your powers in a safe space and also…I see a lot of myself in you – the little things, like how you get angry when you get scared and how you act confident when inside you’re completely at war with yourself. I could have easily let you be put back into the system, however, I thought and still do think that, living in the Avengers Compound will benefit you, as does the rest of the team. Yes, we are all quite busy, however, I am the least…busiest of the team, as a lot of my job just requires paperwork and the odd field mission; you won’t be on your own all the time and I don’t ever want to hear you say that you aren’t important again. Ok?’ Riley nodded and felt a bit of a weight being released off her chest. 

‘You ready to go kiddo?’ Riley nodded again. Natasha stood up and Riley followed her, as they made their way through Central Park in a comfortable silence. 


	7. Being a kid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley figures out that she just want to be a normal child and going to a playground is top of the list - luckily Natasha is there to help out when things get too much.

After a while, Natasha told her that they were taking a shortcut back to the Compound and Riley’s eyes widened as they walked past a playground. Riley found herself looking at it longingly. She realised that she had never actually been to a playground before – there weren’t many in New York anyway and she had never had any friends or lived near any. 

She imagined what it would be like to have had a normal life as a Kid, would she get that with Natasha and the Avengers now? Probably not. Maybe they cared about her, but not in a parental way – she would never get that and she made peace with that a long time ago, but it didn’t stop her wanting a normal childhood, despite her powers.

_ No-one would ever take her for icecream after a bad day at school, or take her on shopping trips. She would never get to show her parents projects at school or learn an instrument – unless Mr Stark had a self teaching piano. Riley figured that she would never go to a friends house for sleepovers, never get to learn how to ride a bike or play football on a Saturday…or even get to go to a playground. However…that was all fine…just like it had always been…what would going on a swing feel like though? It must be like flying… _

‘Everything ok?’ Almost bumping into Natasha, who had stopped walking and was looking at her with an expression that Riley couldn’t place, Riley immediately nodded and went to continue walking, when Natasha put a gentle hand on her shoulder. 

‘What’s on your mind? I can practically hear the clogs whirring.’ Natasha joked, eyes analysing Riley, as the girl shrugged once again.

‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to slow you down.’ She apologised, worried that she had annoyed Natasha already. 

‘You didn’t slow me down. I asked you a question though.’ 

‘Nothing…it’s stupid.’ Natasha raised an eyebrow in question and looked at the young girl expectantly.

‘Try me.’ 

‘I um…I…would I…I mean…could I go on…on the swing? Just for a few minutes! Please! I promise I won’t ask for anything ever again!’ Natasha blinked trying to process the randomness of the question and looking at the longing in Riley’s face, she found herself nodding. She figured that it couldn’t harm the kid to run off some steam and also she had a ton of emails to attend to from that morning, so she followed Riley into the unoccupied playground and sat down on a bench, before responding to the emails, as Riley ran off towards the swings.

After responding to an urgent email from Nick Fury about an upcoming mission, she looked up from her phone to see if Riley was ready to go yet and she frowned when she saw the girl standing in front of the swings with a nervous expression on her face. Natasha watched her for a moment, unsure what the issue was – after all she had asked to go on the swings…why wasn’t she then? 

‘Riley?’ The young girl whipped around and looked at Natasha as she walked towards her and the swings, with a quizzical expression on her usually stoic face.

‘I thought you wanted to go on the swing? Is there crap on it or something?’ Riley shook her head and moved away from the swing set. 

‘No…I don’t want to stay here anymore…can we go?’ Natasha was completely confused. The girl had practically begged her to go into the playground and now she was refusing to go on anything? Why would she want to go on the swings and then decide not to go on it?

‘Why do you want to go?’ The assassin asked gently, hoping that Riley would confide in her. 

‘I…I never went on one before.’ Riley said quietly, shrugging.

‘You’ve never been on a swing before?’

‘To a playground.’ Riley amended quietly, missing Natasha’s surprised expression – she figured that all kids nowadays had been to a playground before, even ones in the system. She didn’t really know how to react or what to say, so she did what she did best and listened.

‘I…I always wanted to…but I just never got the chance. There aren’t many playgrounds around New York…the orphanage and my foster family…they didn’t let me go out by myself; there was only one playground that I knew of which was by my old school when I was in the system – but it was where all the bad kids went and it scared me…so I never went.’ Natasha picked up on the fact that she referred to school as if she hadn’t gone since she was in the Orphanage, but she decided to mentally note to bring that up at a later time. She honestly didn’t think that not going to a playground as a kid was a big issue, as it had never affected her, but clearly Riley wanted to go on the swings and was embarrassed about it, so Natasha decided to help in whatever way she could to make Riley feel less embarrassed.

‘…I thought that it would be…easy to…swing…but…I don’t know how to…to…’ Riley gestured at the swing and Natasha realised what she was trying to say.

Riley shuffled awkwardly and blushed, feeling like Natasha was annoyed at her for making her detour from going to the Compound; however, what the assassin did next, completely took the little girl by surprise.

‘Oh, is that the problem? No worries, I’ll help you. Hop on.’ Natasha walked over to the swing and held it in place, for Riley to sit down on. 

‘But…but what if I fall off?!’ Riley said worriedly, looking at the possible drop to the concrete ground, as she was only 11 and wasn’t very tall for her age – she was practically half the size of Natasha, so it was natural for her to be worried about falling off and hurting herself. 

‘Then I’ll catch you.’ Natasha said simply. Riley bit her lip and looked at Natasha and then at the swing sceptically, before moving over to Natasha and hoisting herself up onto the seat, clinging to Natasha’s arms for dear life.

‘Right. Hold this bit here tightly, not me; I’m not going anywhere, I promise.’ She said trying to make Riley feel more secure, who was currently latched onto her arms so she wouldn’t fall off the swing. Natasha smirked, as the child made no move to let go of her arms and she carefully guided Riley’s hands onto the swing chains, which she then held with a iron-grip – looking at Natasha with a scared expression.

‘Well, you’ve got the hold tight bit sorted.’ Natasha joked and Riley glared at her indignantly.

‘I could fall off and break an ankle! It’s so high!’ She said seriously, eyeing the ground with wide eyes. Natasha huffed in amusement and moved around so she was behind Riley.

‘You won’t break an ankle, you’re barely two feet off the ground. I’m going to push you slowly, until you’ve got the hang of it.’ Natasha instructed, as the back of Riley’s head moved up and down – as she nodded in understanding. 

Riley gripped the chains so hard that her knuckles went white and Natasha chuckled softly to herself, as she started to gently push the girl, who had squeezed her eyes shut. After a few moments, Riley opened her eyes and gasped as she realised that she was starting to get very high. 

‘You good?’

‘Um…I’m very high up now!’ 

‘Riley, you’re not even reaching the top of my head yet.’ Natasha said, shaking her head in amusement. 

‘Oh…’ Riley allowed herself to relax and enjoy the feeling of the wind whip past her face and hair, as she felt Natasha’s hands continue to gently push her, as she swung back and forth.

‘Wanna go higher?’ Natasha asked after a few minutes of talking to Riley about how she won’t fall off as long as she keeps holding on.

‘Yeah!’ 

‘Hold on tight Riley. Don’t let go.’ Natasha said firmly, starting to push harder.

‘Move your feet in a rhythm to try and gain momentum to go higher.’ Natasha pushed harder and Riley went higher and higher, giggling madly. 

‘I’m flying like Ironman!’ Riley yelled in excitement, as she tried to kick her legs to swing higher. Natasha shook her head in exasperation and chuckled. After a few moments, Riley got the hang of it and started to swing herself, laughing loudly, as Natasha watched from the sidelines and took a sneaky picture of how happy and proud Riley looked of herself. After around ten minutes or so, Riley was very confident of her new found swinging abilities and she then realised that she was really high up and started to get scared.

‘Natasha?!’ Riley suddenly said uncertainly, as she started feeling like she was going too high.

‘Yes?’ 

‘I want to stop now!’ Natasha’s eyes widened as Riley started moving around in an effort to stop the swing mid-air.

‘Hey, hey! You’re ok, don’t panic, just stop moving and the swing will come to a stop. You’re not really high, it just feels like it. You’re doing so good.’ Riley felt like she was practically a bird by this point and she was getting really scared of falling off, but she did as Natasha said and finally the swing came to a stop and Riley hopped off, her cheeks rosy from the cold November air. 

‘Have fun?’ Natasha asked, as Riley smiled.

‘Yeah, but I went a bit too high at the end.’ She said sheepishly and Natasha waved her hand dismissively. 

‘Nah, going too high is when you go over the top of the swing set. I learnt that when I first went to a playground with Clint Barton and his kids.’ Riley nodded and then looked at the slide, the roundabout and the seesaw with a mischievous grin and looked at Natasha with a longing expression.

'Go on then.' Natasha said, as Riley grinned and ran off to the slide. She shook her head in amusement and she resigned herself to an afternoon in the park with Riley; she found that she didn’t really mind though, it was a nice change from spending her afternoons surrounded by paperwork and she figured that Riley should get to be a normal kid for a little bit. 


	8. Am I dying?!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley gets her first period and thinks that her powers have malfunctioned and are killing her from the inside! Can Natasha help?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> 3 Chapters today?! I definitely didn't spend all day writing - what do you mean?! I wont be updating my fics for a while, due to lots of Uni stress and deadlines, so I spent today trying to get them all up to date!  
This chapter is based on when I got my first period and thought I was dying! Hope you enjoy - it's an angsty and fluffy one!
> 
> MarvelObsessedgirl3  
xx

Waking up, Riley immediately knew that something was wrong. Her stomach was throbbing and she felt…wet, as she sat up in bed. Turning on the lamp in her room on Natasha’s floor, Riley flung the sheets back and screamed when she saw a small pool of blood, coming from her lower half.

Riley jumped up and backed away from the bed, feeling tears prick at her eyes as she glanced down at her makeshift pajamas that were spotted in blood in a very specific place and at the white bed sheets that were no longer white. _Her first thought, was that she was dying. There were no cuts on her legs or thighs, so she figured that somehow her powers had gone wrong in her sleep and had started to kill her from the inside…she was definitely dying…her stomach was throbbing and she felt sick. What could she do? Maybe if she tried to clean it up, then it would somehow stop?!_

She quickly covered the bloody sheets back up with her duvet, then she ran into her ensuite bathroom and tried to hurriedly mop up some of the blood with towels, however, she realised that she wasn’t stopping bleeding and she fell to the bathroom floor and burst into tears. A few seconds later, there was an urgent knocking on the bathroom door.

***

Natasha had been watching a film in the movie room at the end of the hallway and was about to go to sleep, when she heard a distant sound like a scream and she immediately stood up to go and check on Riley, when Friday spoke up.

_‘Agent Romanoff, it appears that Riley is in distress and needs your assistance.’_

‘Fuck.’ Natasha made her way to the door and then to Riley’s bedroom quickly. She glanced at the locked bathroom door and made her way over to it, rapping her knuckles on it.

‘Riley? Are you ok? Can I come in? Friday said that you were in distress and I thought I heard a scream. Was it another nightmare?’ Riley opened her mouth to say something, but all that came out was a loud sob; she heard Natasha say something in a different language under her breath and then the door knob turned.

‘Okay…I’m coming in.’ Not knowing what to expect, Natasha took a steadying breath to calm herself and she opened the door.

To put it mildly, she was not expecting the sight that befell her. Natasha’s eyes instantly fell on the distraught child who seemed to be half dressed as she was sat on the floor and was covering her lower half with a bloody towel; her makeshift pajama shorts were disregarded in a heap.

‘N…Nata…Natasha! I…I’m…dying! I…I…wo…won’t sto…stop…bleeding!’ Riley sobbed hysterically, pointing to her shorts and the small bloody stain on the towel. Natasha quickly looked closer at the pajama shorts that were in a crumpled heap - they seemed to have blood on them in a very specific place – as did the towel, it wasn’t an injury…which meant… Realisation then instantly dawned; however on deciding what to do, a large heart wrenching sob from the little girl broke Natasha from her quick flurry of thoughts and she realised once again that she had no idea what she was doing – as she had never read anywhere how to comfort a child getting their first period; so she went with her instincts.

‘…Natasha…I…I…I don’t…don’t wan…want…to…to…die!’ Riley sobbed, tears streaming down her face as she looked helplessly at the woman, who immediately set into action.

‘Hey, you’re alright – you’re not dying! You’re alright…shhhh…calm down.’ The assassin knelt down next to the crying child and opened her arms for Riley – supposing that physical contact might help to calm her down and hoping that she wasn’t overstepping, however to her relief Riley flung herself into Natasha’s open arms and continued to cry loudly. Natasha readjusted the towel so it wouldn’t fall off the girl and gently rubbed her back, quietly consoling her in both Russian and English, whilst rocking her back and forth slightly – like she did with Clint Barton’s children when they were upset.

‘I…I’m…d…dying…b…bleeding…to…death…my…my…powers!’ Riley wailed into Natasha’s shoulder and it was then, that Natasha realised why Riley was so hysterical - she had no idea what was happening to her body and she thought that her powers had caused her to essentially bleed to death. The girl was sat in her lap by this point, crying into her chest, but Natasha didn’t seem bothered in the slightest and she continued to rub her back gently and quietly shushed her whenever she started to get worked up again.

Natasha figured that the child had never been told about periods or probably other things to do with her health by anyone in her foster family or in the orphanage and from what she had gathered earlier that afternoon, she figured that she hadn’t been at school in a while either – so hadn’t learnt about it there.

‘Shhh…shhhh…Riley, you aren’t dying or bleeding to death. Your powers didn’t cause this, it’s completely natural. You’re alright, I promise.’ Natasha realised that Riley wasn’t listening at all as she was crying so loudly, so she simply held the girl and continued to quietly murmur to her in both Russian and English, whilst rocking her in what she hoped was a soothing manner.

Riley continued to cry as her stomach throbbed painfully, but also she was exhausted by this point (which Natasha was very aware of, as it was almost 3am) and the young girl tiredly rested her head on Natasha’s shoulder, trying to calm down, until her cries quietened and she was able to hear the assassins voice clearly.

‘You aren’t dying and your powers didn’t cause this.’ Natasha repeated in a soothing voice, when she made sure that Riley was able to hear her, despite tears still flooding down her flushed cheeks; Riley turned to face Natasha in bewilderment.

‘I…I’m n…not d…dying?’

‘Nope.’ Replied Natasha, popping the ‘p’, and continuing to rub her back comfortingly as Riley sniffled.

‘B…but…wh…why a…am I…I…bleeding?!’ She cried, as Natasha quietly shushed her and attempted to explain what was happening briefly as it was 3am, but with enough kid-friendly information so that Riley would understand.

‘Well clearly nobody has ever told you; but once a month, females get something called a period…’ Natasha went onto explain what was happening to her body and Riley’s breath hitched as she tried to calm down and process what was being said to her.

‘So…so I…my powers…they didn’t…do this?’ Riley asked, looking up at Natasha with her brown teary eyes, after Natasha had finished explaining and she smiled softly and shook her head.

‘No, like I said, it’s completely natural and it happens to most women – as some don’t get this as they have medical diagnoses that prevent it and so on. You said to me yesterday that you had tummy ache and felt a bit sick?’ Riley nodded. ‘-well it was probably your body getting ready for this. Do you still have the same tummy ache?’ Riley nodded again and listened as Natasha told her about period symptoms that would more than likely happen to her once a month.

Riley finally stopped crying and put her head tiredly on Natasha’s shoulder again, grimacing as her stomach throbbed painfully again. Natasha stood up and hoisted Riley onto one of her hips, making sure the towel was secure around her waist aswell, she then sat her down on top of the toilet seat and turned the shower on.

‘I’m going to go and change your sheets and get a few things. I’ll be right back. I want you to give yourself a quick wash – don’t bother with your hair though. Pop the bloody towels and stuff into the laundry and I’ll sort that out later, ok?’ Riley nodded tiredly and sniffled as Natasha passed her a new clean bath-towel and then left the room.

Not even five minutes later, Riley was sitting on the toilet seat, clean and fully covered in a new bath-towel whilst Natasha was showing her how to catch the blood and what to do. Natasha luckily had a secret stash of pads and painkillers, in case Wanda needed them for emergencies and Natasha was very thankful in that moment that she was so organised.

After helping Riley to get changed into new makeshift pajamas and making her take a few painkillers, Natasha breathed a sigh of relief as Riley started yawning and rubbing her eyes tiredly. She led Riley into the now clean bed and pulled the comforter around her, before smoothing her hair back.

‘You ok now?’ Riley hummed in response and mumbled a thank you, before her eyelids started to flutter closed. Natasha carded her fingers through her hair softly, until Riley’s breaths evened out.

Natasha turned the lamp off and stood by the doorway, as the light from the hallway illuminated Riley’s sleeping form. She felt sorry for the poor girl – no wonder she was terrified of dying before. Imagine waking up in blood and not knowing why you’re bleeding, let alone a kid who had super-powers! Natasha watched the girl sleep for a few moments and then she smiled fondly, as Riley shuffled slightly in her sleep and she left to go to bed - thinking that she might be able to deal with an 11 year old after all.


	9. Home-schooling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley doesn't want to be stuck doing Russian translations - she would rather be playing outside and she decides that she no longer cares about trying to do her work at all. Natasha isn't impressed with this.

Over the next couple of days, Riley started to settle into life at the Compound. She quickly realised that everything was very chaotic and there always seemed to be at least a few people around at any given time.

Natasha and Tony had been extremely busy with mountains of paperwork and trying to figure out about Riley’s foster family’s whereabouts – which was proving very difficult, as they couldn’t find a lead anywhere.

After the night-time incident a few days prior – when Riley had woken up the following morning, mortified about how she had acted (which Natasha dismissed, to try and help her feel less embarrassed about the situation); they had both sat down and Natasha had informed Riley about the rules that she was to follow whilst living at the Compound. One of the rules, was that Riley was to be home-schooled for the foreseeable future, as Natasha was concerned that she hadn’t gone to school in a couple of years. She had found out, that after leaving the Orphanage, Riley’s foster family hadn’t enrolled her in a new school and they had essentially kept her hidden from the world – another reason that she personally wanted to hunt them down.

The child’s powers had only started two years or so ago – since living with her foster family according to Riley – which was why she was taken out of school and hidden away from the world; and so Natasha was concerned about Riley’s academia, she had therefore taken to personally tutoring her and that meant a lot of work for the 11 year old, to catch up with where she should be at.

Since the night-time incident, Riley had kept herself to herself and had been very blaze with everybody in the Compound, going back to her façade of over confidence and being stubborn – that of course Natasha had noticed, but had chosen to ignore. She had tried to talk to her of course, but she had been met with an attitude or a glare – so reluctantly Natasha had stopped prying and tried to give Riley some space.

‘-I don’t wanna do this anymore – it’s hard! I’m so bored!’ Natasha looked up from her laptop, eyebrow raised, as Riley snapped shut a large book that she was halfway through and she crossed her arms, looking at Natasha with a glare.

‘Then pick another book to translate, if you’re not enjoying that one. There’s plenty more on the shelf to choose from.’ The assassin replied nonchalantly and she gestured to the bookcase on the other side of the room - refusing to give into the argument that she could sense that was brewing. She then continued to type on the laptop, as Riley scowled and crossed her arms stubbornly.

It was snowing outside and the young girl desperately wanted to go outside and play in it – but she was meant to be translating old Russian texts into English that morning and writing down any questions that she had – as Natasha wanted her to learn a second language and after what seemed like hours of trying, Riley was very bored. She knew that Natasha had a lot of work to do, but she didn’t fancy being stuck in her office sat on the sofa, translating old books all day, when there were plenty more fun things for her to be doing.

Growing up, nobody ever cared about her and when she used to go to school – a few years prior, she always did the bare minimum, living in fear of being called dumb if she tried to put effort in and got the answers wrong or anything; so having Natasha monitoring her progress and giving her work to do, was quite overwhelming.

The fire crackled loudly in the fireplace and the flames got bigger – mirroring the child’s annoyance and at another raised eyebrow from Natasha, Riley took a deep breath, so as not to accidentally burn the room down, as she could feel herself getting annoyed.

Riley knew that Natasha had been very accommodating, by mapping out a daily schedule that balanced work and free time – of course giving her regular breaks and fun things to do, aswell as setting up a small workspace on the sofa in her office, so she could keep an eye on her and be there if she had any questions; however, Riley just couldn’t get used to having an adult take an active role in making sure that she was ok and trying to help her to succeed.

It was all such a change and Riley wasn’t sure if she liked it or not.

She had settled into the Compound, but overall, she still felt very out of place. Tony and Wanda had taken her shopping the previous day – much to her dismay and it ended up with her feeling incredibly overwhelmed at everything they had insisted on buying her, as she was used to having hardly anything. On top of that, she was still learning peoples names and the Compound layout and she now had a bedtime and a daily routine – which she wasn’t sure she liked at all, as she wasn’t used to adults being concerned about things like that. On top of all that, she was on her period for the first time and was still having nightly terrors about what happened both on the streets and in her foster family.

She was incredibly grateful to be off the streets and with the Avengers, but to an extent, she had started to feel a bit stifled living there, as she was used to so much freedom and she didn’t know how to react to it at all.

‘If the wind changes, then your face will stay like that.’

Riley huffed at how calm Natasha was and she continued sulking. She didn’t mind being home schooled at first, because she thought it would be tons of fun, just goofing off – but apparently, she actually had to do work and now Riley didn’t like the idea of it anymore. She wasn’t allowed to go to a mainstream school, due to her powers and all the Avengers and Social Services being in agreement that she could have an accident there with her powers – so it was safer for now, for her to be educated in the Compound, under the guidance of Natasha and the Avengers.

She just wished that she could be a normal kid; one who was allowed to go to school and play outside without having somebody constantly watch you, you so don’t burn anything to pieces or break the floor if you sneezed wrong. Riley blinked angry tears away at that thought; she wasn’t about to let all those insecure thoughts overwhelm her or break down in front of Natasha again – as then she would be even more concerned and think that she was a baby; so Riley kept quiet and took a few more deep breaths, so she wouldn’t get worked up.

She had never opened up to anybody about how she felt about herself or her past and she wasn’t about to start now, no matter how nice Natasha and everybody else were being towards her.

‘Sitting there and pouting at the garden, isn’t going to change my mind. All you’re doing, is wasting your time. The quicker you finish, the quicker you can go and play outside.’

‘Why can’t I go now and then come back and do this later? I’ve been at it for hours.’ Groaned Riley, sighing dramatically, as Natasha looked over at her with an almost bored expression.

‘You’ve been ‘at it’ for all of 37 minutes today and 11 of those minutes, were spent arguing with me about the fact that you want to make up a new language instead of learn an existing one.’

‘Well, it feels like hours. I’m pretty sure your clock is broken actually – you might want to get someone to fix that.’ Riley quipped, looking at the large cuckoo clock which hung by the office door, ticking away. She knew she was being difficult, but she was sick of being made to do things that she didn’t want to do. First the shopping, then the house rules – that all the Avengers had agreed to, then the bedtime routine, the daily routine, the constant monitoring from an adult or the AI in the building, the healthy eating, reliving her nightmares every night and now this.

‘There is nothing wrong with my clock, my watch or the time on my laptop. They all say the same thing. If you don’t have anything sensible to say or ask, then please refrain from interrupting me, as I need to do this paperwork and you need to finish your translations.’ Natasha replied in a neutral voice, not even looking up from her laptop this time. Riley sighed again.

After a few more minutes of sitting in silence, apart from the sounds of Natasha’s slender fingers typing away quickly on her laptop and the occasional scratch of a pen on paper, Riley decided to have some fun inside, despite Natasha’s instructions. She wanted to see if she could control the snow from inside and so, she slowly reached a hand out towards the window nearest her, so as not to alert Natasha and she tried to make it snow harder. After a couple of attempts, she managed to make it snow very heavily and she grinned in triumph, until she realised that Natasha was staring at her with narrowed eyes.

‘Translations. Now.’

Riley immediately looked down at her notebook that had half a page written scruffily in it; she reopened the old book, picked up the pen and started to write again. Glancing up after a minute or so, she saw that Natasha was frowning over the contents of a large folder marked ‘Confidential’; and she decided to move the water in her glass on the coffee table around with her mind; at least that would be better than learning Russian, she thought. Closing her eyes and concentrating, she tried to make the water rise slightly in her glass, when all of a sudden a voice spoke from behind her.

‘Don’t even think about it.’ Riley jumped, as Natasha walked in front of her and to the door of the office, holding the folder, before looking back at her.

‘-I need to go and find Clint for a moment, when I come back, you better be reading, not messing about.’ Riley nodded and watched as Natasha silently left the office. She figured that she would just pretend to be writing, as if she could put it off for a little bit longer, then it would be her break time and she could go and play; so why not try and make the time go by quicker?!

Riley successfully managed to part the water and make funny little spiral shapes in the water for a good few minutes, until Natasha cleared her throat from the doorway and Riley lost concentration, making the water slosh back into the glass noisily but luckily without much spillage. She looked up at Natasha hesitantly and she locked onto the piercing green eyes, that seemed to be seeing straight through her and she knew that she was in trouble, even though Natasha’s face was as stoic as usual.

‘If you aren’t going to do as I have asked, then you can take yourself off to your bedroom, until you learn to do as you’re told. The translations will be waiting for you, when you come back.’

‘I’ve finished most of them.’ Lied Riley, as Natasha hummed in response, sitting back at her desk, looking at Riley.

‘Is that so? All the ones that I highlighted for you on all of the pages?’

‘Yes, pretty much all of them now.’ Replied Riley in what she hoped was a confident voice.

‘Good, well, bring them here, so I can look at them and help you with any questions you have about them.’

‘No.’ Natasha raised an eyebrow at the sudden protest.

‘Why not?’ Riley racked her head for a good excuse, so she could leave without being found out and hopefully get google translate up later on Sam’s laptop after dinner.

‘I need to re-write them in better handwriting.’

‘Oh of course, what page number did you get up to then?’ Riley froze, she had no idea how many pages were in that huge book. It must be at least 600, as it was very large. She’d been working on that book for the past three days in her lessons, but she had no idea how many pages she’d already done. It was over half, but she wasn’t sure on the exact number, so she decided to wing it and hope for the best.

‘…um page 467.’ She answered in a confident voice, as Natasha raised her eyebrows, before clasping her hands together in front of her.

‘Well, that’s very interesting, considering that the book in front of you, only goes up to page 402.’ Riley gulped and looked down at the book in front of her, not reading the words or anything, it was just so she didn’t have to make eye contact with the assassin – who she was sure was about to start yelling at her for lying.

‘Riley, look at me please.’ The girl hesitantly lifted her eyes and met Natasha’s gaze – stoic as ever, although Riley could see a bit of disappointment there that made her stomach feel funny – she ignored it however and continued to glare at her.

‘We both know that you’re lying. Are you finding the translations difficult? Would you like me to help you?’ Riley didn’t say anything, she just continued to glare at Natasha, who sighed.

Natasha had no idea how to approach this and she wanted to get to the real reason that Riley was being difficult – as she had been the past few days; however, if the child wouldn’t talk to her, then there was only so much she could do.

‘No.’

‘No what?’

‘No I am not lying. I have done almost everything and I want to go now.’ Natasha knew that Riley hadn’t finished at all, as she had been periodically checking, whenever Riley had gone on breaks or gone to the bathroom; as she had been helping her with the translations periodically over the past few days and she had no idea why Riley was suddenly lying and refusing help. She was tolerant of many things, but lying wasn’t one of them. Clint had told her how to approach this – if ever Riley should act out, and so Natasha pursed her lips and glared right back at Riley, keeping a neutral voice.

‘Right. Take yourself off to your bedroom and when you’re ready to apologise to me for lying and to continue with your work properly, then you may come back.’

‘Whatever. I’m not lying and I’m not coming back and you can’t make me finish these stupid translations!’ Riley said viciously, slamming the book shut on the coffee table and standing up, her arms crossed over her chest.

‘Room. Now.’ Natasha said, watching in exasperation, as the young girl stormed out of the office and she then heard a faint slam of her bedroom door at the other end of the corridor. Natasha put her head in her hands, she had no idea what she was doing and it was infuriating her that Riley wouldn’t talk to her at all, when she had given her many chances to. Time for a different approach.


	10. Suffering in silence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha tries to talk to Riley, but the girl keeps putting up walls.

As soon as Riley had gone to her bedroom and slammed the door, she felt anger coursing through her veins at the unfairness of it all.

She slumped down on the floor, knees pulled up to her chest as she tried to get her breathing under control. The translations hadn’t been too difficult, apart from when she had gotten stuck on the last few ones and had given up trying. Riley knew that she had over-reacted to the situation and there was no need to lie to Natasha about the translations, but every other adult would have punished her for not finishing the work and she didn’t want to be punished, which was why she lied. In the Orphanage, they would get the cane out if she got in trouble and in her foster family…well, Riley didn’t want to think about what they did to her if they got mad.

She felt angry tears prickle her eyes at how badly she had screwed up again and she realised that her breathing had sped up, not slowed down and she started to panic slightly.

_Would Natasha kick her out now? No, she said she would never do that…but adults lie all the time, why would this be any different? Natasha hasn’t lied though…maybe she is different. Why did she have to be so difficult and closed off from everyone, could she ever trust anyone ever?! _

Riley squeezed her eyes shut and felt the window in her bedroom rattle, as she no longer was able to keep the thoughts under control that she had done for weeks. It was like a seal had been broken and all of the insecure thoughts were tumbling out, memories and fears…

_Why did she have to have these stupid powers – all they did was make people scared and mad! Her powers had made sure that she could never go to a proper school, or have a family, or be a normal kid…she didn’t even know how to act like a normal kid…_

A sob escaped Riley and she put her fist in her mouth in an effort to keep quiet. Looking around her bedroom, she saw all her new toys and books, clothes and stationery; she felt like they belonged to somebody else. When Tony and Wanda had taken her shopping, she had felt super overwhelmed, as she had never had so much of anything before and now, looking around at everything they had insisted on buying her, Riley realised that she didn’t even know **how **to play, let alone with toys – she had never had a toy in her entire life, apart from being able to play around with her powers outside when nobody was looking. Riley stood up and started to pile everything inside her new wardrobe: toy after toy, book after book, until her bedroom was quite bare again – just like it was on that first night. She had never had anything to herself, so why should she start now, when having things meant that people could use that against you?

_Everything was just too much: moving into the Compound, all the new rules and routines, nightly terrors and memories that constantly threatened to make her breakdown and her powers – which always made her scared of herself, of hurting people when she wouldn’t mean to; Riley felt completely alone and when she felt alone and vulnerable, she got stubborn and pushed people away. _

After a few minutes of trying to regulate her breathing, Riley managed to push all the thoughts away, by counting the stick-on purple wall décor butterflies on her bedroom wall – that Wanda had insisted on buying her and that wouldn’t come off – as she had already tried and failed to peel them off the wall. Riley sniffed and tried to ignore the tears that were steadily making their way down her cheeks, by collapsing on her bed and making a cocoon out of blankets, that she then crawled into. A few minutes later, the young girl cried herself into an uneasy sleep, feeling utterly alone as ever.

***

Natasha sighed in relief at having finally finished her paperwork. Shuffling the papers into an acceptable order, she then glanced at the book that had been left on the coffee table, that Riley had meant to have been translating. She opened it and started to read what the girl had written, pleased to see that the majority of it was very decent work, although there wasn’t the expected amount there; what she had done was very good – this made Natasha all the more confused as to her reaction earlier. She then turned the page and was met with a lot of scribbles and crossings out – Riley was clearly stuck on the next section, that was the problem, but why didn’t she say anything and why did she lie? Natasha knew that something else was up and she wanted to help her, but she had no idea how to go about getting through to an angry child.

She looked up at the time and frowned. It had only been about 30 minutes, but she hadn’t heard anything from Riley and she decided to step up as the adult and to go and check on her.

Approaching Riley’s shut bedroom door, she mentally prepared herself for an argument and rapped her knuckles on the door.

‘Riley?’ No answer. Brilliant.

‘I’m coming in.’ No answer again. Natasha huffed at the childish behaviour and opened the door. She looked around the bedroom and frowned slightly when she saw how bare it was. There were random books and pencils strewn across the carpet and everything that was still out on display was in a bit of mess. Her eyes found a small lump on the bed, wrapped in a cocoon of blankets and comforters. She walked up to the bed and saw Riley, fast asleep, breathing evenly, with dried tear tracks on her flushed face. Natasha felt her heart plummet at the sight.

She debated leaving her to sleep for a bit, however, it was nearly lunchtime and she was worried that Riley wouldn’t sleep that night if she napped, so she decided to wake her and hopefully try to help with whatever had made her so upset.

‘Riley.’

‘Riley, come on, wakey wakey.’ The girl whimpered at the sudden voice and her eyes flew open, still glassy from both sleep and her previous crying. She sat up and looked at Natasha with a scared expression, who held her hands up in a placating gesture.

‘Just me, Kid.’

‘…oh.’ Riley seemed to visibly relax at the fact that there was only her and Natasha in the room – almost as if she expected it to be somebody else, with hurtful intent by how quickly she sat up and looked like a deer in headlights, Natasha thought. After a few seconds of glancing between her room and Natasha, Riley blinked, sat up and pulled her knees to her chest, staring determinedly out of the window. _She wasn’t going to break down in front of Natasha again, she wasn’t weak and she sure as hell didn’t have to tell this woman anything – she barely knew her!_

‘So, are you going to tell me what the problem is, or not?’ Riley immediately put on a confused expression, when inside she was freaking out at the thought of telling Natasha everything.

‘There…there isn’t a problem.’

‘Hm….’ Natasha raised an eyebrow and watched as Riley stared out of the window, her entire body tense.

‘Riley.’

‘What?!’ The girl suddenly snapped and glared at Natasha, who continued to look at her with an unreadable expression. ‘Just go ahead and beat me already, I know you want to.’

Natasha furrowed her eyebrows, confused and also concerned at this comment. ‘What?’

‘Well that’s what’s going to happen isn’t it?! Just get it over with!’ Natasha saw that Riley had angry, but also sad tears in her eyes and she realised in that moment, that there was more to her past than she had originally thought and Natasha realised that she needed to find out the extent of what had happened, however, that would only happen if Riley felt like she could trust her.

‘Riley. I don’t know what you’ve grown up with, but beating children as punishment, isn’t something that is acceptable with most people and especially not with me. You will not have to worry about that here. I will not hurt you in anyway, as I don’t think that violence and pain is an effective punishment. However, I will be coming up with an appropriate punishment.’ At this comment, Riley looked at Natasha and it broke Natasha’s heart to see the hopefulness in her expression, at the fact that she wasn’t going to be beaten as a punishment.

‘-another thing that we have yet to discuss first of all, is what happened earlier.’ Riley started playing with a strand of thread on her sleeve, not really knowing what to say. Natasha sat down on the end of the bed and turned to look at the 11 year old, who was staring determinedly at the thread.

‘Let’s start easy. How are you finding the translations?’ Riley frowned and looked up at Natasha, who was looking at her expectantly. Riley thought that she would just punish her and leave, she didn’t expect to have a full-blown conversation with her.

‘Why do you care so much? Nobody ever has done before!’ She replied angrily, pulling on the thread so hard that it started to come off her sleeve. Natasha gently placed one of her hands over the girl’s smaller ones and Riley looked up at her, trying to keep all her emotions under control.

‘I care, because like it or not, you have people looking out for you now, people fighting in your corner. I know that this move must be super hard on you and that you’re probably feeling a bit…out of place, however, we are all here to help you, especially me. I need you to know that you can always come and talk to me, about anything that you’re feeling or want to talk about.’ Riley kept quiet, however she heard the snow rattling against the window again and she focussed on trying to keep calm.

‘Is there anything that you want to talk to me about?’ Riley immediately shook her head.

‘No.’

‘I had a look at the work you’d done and it was pretty decent, albeit not quite as much as I would have hoped. However, I saw that you seemed a bit stuck on the last few pages.’ Riley shrugged and continued to stare out of the window, watching as the snow fell heavier, she kept trying to make it lighter but she couldn’t – Natasha didn’t comment on this at all.

‘Would you like some help? Is that why you didn’t follow my instructions and lied?’ Riley shrugged again and when Natasha didn’t reply, she then sighed and nodded.

‘Yeah…I’m sorry, it’s a bit hard…’ Natasha hummed in reply and then gestured for Riley to follow her back into her office, she decided to address the bare bedroom at a later time.

They both sat down on the sofa and Natasha opened the book and started to explain where Riley was stuck. After a while, Riley started to get the hang of it and she seemed a bit happier than before, although there was a sadness in her eyes that Natasha desperately wanted to get rid of, but she knew that the only way to get through to Riley, was to let her come to her – she was like her in that regard; closed off from other people and she got angry when she got scared or upset.

‘Does that make sense?’ Riley looked up from writing and nodded, mumbling a quiet thank you, before going back to her translations. She wasn’t used to asking for help, but she did have to admit that it was much easier to have someone help her, rather than suffer in silence.

‘Is there anything else that you want to talk to me about, before I go and reply to a shit ton of emails?’ Riley stilled for a moment and then quickly shook her head. She heard Natasha sigh quietly, before the assassin stood up and made her way to her desk, Riley looked up at her.

‘What’s my punishment?’ Natasha pursed her lips and decided to go easy on her, as she had already apologised and had gone back to doing her work, without arguing too much.

‘Seeing as you have accepted responsibility for your actions and have gone back to doing your work at a good level, your punishment will be to finish all of the translations that I had highlighted and you will be doing the dishes tonight.’ Riley opened her mouth to argue at the fact that it would take her at least another hour or so to finish all the translations, but at a raised eyebrow from Natasha, she nodded defeatedly and went back to reading the book.

***

‘I’ve finished.’ Riley held out her finished translations to Natasha, who stopped typing on her laptop and took the book from the girl’s hands, before perusing the pages.

‘Well done. They look to be at a decent standard. Tomorrow, we will be doing a brief American history and some geographical studies – I have put the books on your bed, if you would like to read ahead. You may go and spend the remainder of the afternoon having free time in the areas of the Compound that are not off limits, unless you want to talk about anything?’ Natasha watched as Riley hesitated and then shook her head firmly. Nodding in understanding, Natasha went back to typing on her laptop and Riley quickly left the room.

After a while, Natasha stretched and closed her laptop, happy that she was once again up to date with all her work and emails. She glanced at the time and decided it was probably best to start dinner for herself and Riley – as they were eating on her private floor still, as Natasha didn’t want to overwhelm her further by making her sit with the Avengers at every meal time, considering she hadn’t even been there for a week yet.

Natasha made to stand up and leave the office, when something caught her eye. Walking over to the window that overlooked the grounds, she saw Riley, sitting on a bench, a little ways away, as it snowed heavily around her. On further inspection, Natasha saw that she had clearly been crying again and that her fists were clenched tightly, as she looked around at the snow with a sad expression. Natasha watched for a few moments, until she saw that the snow suddenly changed into patterns, which swirled around the young girl and made her smile slightly.

Looking at the child on the bench, Natasha saw a resemblance to a younger version of herself – abused, lonely, different and lost in herself; and in that moment she decided to do everything that she could to help Riley.


	11. Pretend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha tries to get Riley to open up to her a bit more and she introduces her to the world of pretend play.

‘I don’t like it.’ Riley grumbled, as she pushed around a piece of broccoli with her fork, looking at it like it had personally attacked her; Natasha raised an eyebrow and walked over to the table, holding a bowl of roast potatoes.

‘How do you know that, if you haven’t tried it?’ She asked easily, scooping some potatoes onto both of their plates, before sitting down opposite the scowling child.

‘Don’t want to try it.’ Riley replied, pushing away her plate and crossing her arms. Natasha ate a mouthful of chicken and then tried to put into action, something that she had read about earlier about parenting.

‘How about, if you eat five pieces of broccoli and at least half of that chicken breast, then you may have a special dessert tonight?’

‘Fine.’ Natasha inwardly smirked as she watched Riley perk up at the word ‘dessert’ and she took a tentative bite of the broccoli before eating the rest of the piece.

‘How is it?’

‘Not too bad actually. You’re a good cook.’ Riley said nonchalantly, eating some chicken, as Natasha blinked in shock.

She had never considered herself to be a good cook – as it was just something that she had picked up since leaving the Red Room, however, she smiled, as Riley quickly ate up her dinner. Natasha had been cooking bland foods for them both, as Riley hadn’t been at the Compound for a full week yet and after a medical check up from Bruce, he told them that Riley was underweight and would need a specialised diet. Natasha had therefore taken care to cook the correct healthy things, to bring Riley up to a normal weight, whilst also making sure that the meals wouldn’t be too heavy for her – as she had barely been eating whilst living on the streets.

‘Thanks Kid. Maybe we could try and cook something a bit more adventurous in the future, together?’ This time it was Riley’s turn to look up in shock. Ever since she was a little girl, she had never been invited to do anything with any adult before – and so on top of everything else, this was another reason why she had trust issues with adults, as she never had felt wanted before by any of them; Natasha was clearly different and Riley had no idea how to react to this.

‘Y…you want to…to cook with me?’ Natasha nodded in response, watching Riley intently, as the girl had subtly started to shake ever so slightly – not missed by the assassin of course.

‘Yes, I do. Is that ok?’ Riley nodded and then frowned.

‘Um…oh…sure, I guess, but…why?’

‘Why what?’

‘Why do you want to…to do that with me, when you don’t have to?’ Natasha watched as Riley looked down at her lap and her glass of water started to shake a bit, causing the water to bubble slightly.

‘Because, I want to.’ Natasha replied simply. Riley looked up and couldn’t help a small smile show on her face, as she nodded and continued eating, the water then settled in her glass.

***

It was dark outside and after dinner, Riley had gone to her room, choosing to stay away from the rest of the Avengers, to read a book before she went to bed, when there was a small knock at her door. Natasha.

‘Can I come in?’

‘If you want to, it’s a free country.’ Riley replied, watching as Natasha pushed open the door and walked inside, before sitting on the edge of her bed, looking at her intently.

‘Are you busy?’

‘No. Just reading.’

‘What are you reading? You know you can come downstairs whenever you want to and sit with us all, you aren’t confined up here.’

‘I know. I’m reading Alice in Wonderland.’ Riley held the book out to Natasha, who took it and smirked, before giving it back to the girl, who closed it and looked at Natasha expectantly.

‘What’s up?’

‘Nothing. I just wondered, if I could have a chat with you?’

‘Sure.’ Riley watched as Natasha looked around the room and then back at her with an expression that she wasn’t overly familiar with and couldn’t quite place.

‘I noticed earlier, that your room looks a bit bare. Want to talk about why that is?’ Immediately, Riley shook her head.

‘Not really. It’s fine.’

‘I know that Tony and Wanda went with you to get some clothes and things for your room.’ Natasha pressed gently, watching as Riley shrugged and started tracing the picture on the front of the book she had been reading.

‘Did you not like what they had bought you?’

‘No! I did!’ Natasha had an idea about why Riley had hidden most of her new things in the wardrobe – there was a tag sticking out that she of course had noticed. She nodded and then tilted her head, as she wanted to try and get Riley to open up a bit to her.

‘Okay, so do you want to tell me why none of it is on display in your bedroom, where it should be and is hidden in the wardrobe?’ Riley blushed slightly and sighed, as she realised that Natasha was a spy and of course would have realised about her toys and things sooner or later.

‘Why do you care? It’s my bedroom and I can do what I like.’

‘That is true, however, wouldn’t you like to make this room a bit more…homely?’ Riley looked around at the bare walls – apart from the stick-on butterflies, and at the bare furniture, before shaking her head.

‘Why not?’ Natasha pressed in a soft voice, as Riley continued to trace the picture on the book, before looking up at her as if having an internal battle about something. After a moment or two of looking torn, Riley sighed and pulled her knees up to her chest, before looking at Natasha and taking a deep breath.

‘I never had a lot of stuff growing up.’ Natasha nodded and gave her a small smile, encouraging Riley to continue.

‘…Um…I don’t know, I just feel that, the more stuff I have, then the more things people can use against me. You know, take stuff from me that I might end up caring about. It’s dumb, but I never even had a stuffed animal – I did when I first came to the orphanage, but I found it on my bed one day, ripped apart and drawn all over by some kid. The Matron threw it in the bin. I was four.’

‘I’m sorry to hear that.’ Natasha said in a genuine voice, as Riley nodded absentmindedly and continued talking.

‘So, when Mr Stark and Wanda bought me all that stuff, like, I was grateful obviously, but then I just came in here and it just felt like it wasn’t my bedroom, like it belonged to someone else, full of someone else’s things…because I’ve never had any of this before.’ Riley finished talking and started to play with her hair, as Natasha debated something.

‘I understand.’

‘How could you, you’ve never been shoved in an orphanage or given to a family who doesn’t give two shits about you?!’ Natasha pursed her lips at the language and Riley looked slightly guilty at it, but then the assassin let it slide, as she was happy that the girl was finally starting to open up to her.

‘When I was growing up, I lived in a place called the Red Room. They basically kidnapped young girls and trained them to be assassins in very brutal ways. I was the top of my class, the best that the school had ever seen. I never had anything that belonged to me, as everything in that place, belonged to the headteacher. I was trained to be a bad guy, but I realised that that wasn’t who I wanted to be. When I left and became an Avenger, I was introduced to this whole new world essentially, a place where I could eat what I wanted and buy what I wanted without any judgement. I could finally have physical possessions that wouldn’t be used against me or taken away from me or that belonged to somebody else.’ Natasha watched as Riley listened intently, looking at Natasha like she was seeing her for the first time.

‘-so, I do understand what you mean. It’s hard, trying to find out where you fit into things…where you feel like you belong. It might take some time, but I’m hoping that you’ll realise that we all care for you and want what’s best for you. We just want you to be happy. The reason that Tony and Wanda went a bit overboard, was because they wanted to spoil you, as they knew you probably wouldn’t have a lot growing up.’ Natasha explained as Riley nodded.

‘I’m sorry, it was just overwhelm…’

‘-no apologies for that Kid. I get it. I do. How about we go through it all, and decide what you want to keep and what you want me to put into storage for now, hmm?’ Riley nodded - it seemed a lot less overwhelming having somebody else there who seemed to understand.

A few minutes later, they were both on the floor, surrounded by boxes of toys, books and clothes, which they were both sorting through. Natasha watched subtly as Riley held onto a box of fantasy themed Lego, as if contemplating something, before her face fell slightly and she put it to one side to go into storage.

‘Never met a Kid who doesn’t like Lego.’ Natasha joked, folding a blue formal dress and putting it into a spare box. Riley bit her lip and debated whether or not to trust Natasha a bit more, she seemed to understand what she had already said so far…maybe she would understand this too?

‘I…when I said I didn’t have anything growing up…um…I also never actually played or anything either, I just read books and coloured and stuff. I don’t know how to…to play with toys.’ She managed awkwardly and Natasha nodded slightly, before taking the box of Lego out of the storage box and opening it.

‘No problem. I should have checked before moneybags bought you tons of stuff. I just assumed that you would have had toys to play with in the Orphanage…guess not. Here, no time like the present to learn how to play. Everyone has to play with Lego at some point, it’s like a right of passage or something.’ Natasha held out the box towards Riley, who smiled and scrunched her face up, as she thought of something.

‘You play with Lego?’ Riley asked – the thought of Superheroes playing with toys in their spare time, being too funny not to mention. Natasha shook her head and laughed.

‘No, but Clint does sometimes. I have had experience with his Kids, playing with them, so I wouldn’t consider myself an expert, however, Lila Barton would argue that I am very good at making castles out of Lego.’ Riley opened the box and emptied the sealed contents onto the already messy floor, which Natasha was quickly tidying.

‘…what are you doing Kid?’ Looking up after a few minutes of reading the manual on the box’s contents, Riley frowned as she realised that Natasha was watching her with an odd expression on her face, so she then gestured to the manual and shrugged.

‘Reading the instructions on what to do? Although, it doesn’t really say anything.’ She said, flipping the paper manual around slightly, as Natasha gave a sad smile, before sitting down next to the girl, crossed legged. She began to open some of the plastic packets and emptied them onto the floor.

‘But…but you haven’t read the manual! How do you know what to build?!’ Natasha scoffed and took the manual from Riley’s hands before throwing it accurately back into the box that had ended up on the other side of the room. She picked up a ton of sealed packets and put them in front of Riley, who looked at them sceptically, before looking at Natasha who smirked.

‘Don’t need to read it. Rule one of playing, is that there aren’t really any rules. It’s completely up to your imagination with what you do. Here, do you want the normal coloured pieces or the fantasy style one?’

‘Normal please.’

‘Alright then, take these and make something with it.’ Natasha helped Riley unpackage a small pile of normal multicolour Legos, before she started to assemble something for herself with the new Lego fantasy set. Riley studied the pieces and started to build, finding herself becoming quite invested in her design.

She kept trying to steal a glance at what Natasha was making, but the assassin was too quick for her and kept it shielded very well, so that Riley was completely focussed on her own creation. After around ten minutes or so, Natasha had finished and watched as Riley put on the finishing pieces to hers.

‘What did you make?’ Natasha asked the girl, who proudly held out a pile of multicolour Lego in the shape of what seemed to be some sort of building.

‘It’s a Chinese takeaway, like the one down the road we walked past.’ Natasha burst out laughing at how random that was and then at the offended look from the little girl, she quickly schooled her expression into a more neutral one.

‘What’s so funny?! You said I can make whatever I want!’ Demanded Riley, looking at her Chinese takeaway building in confusion and then at Natasha with a pout on her face.

‘Well…you can make whatever you want to…but usually kids make cars or animals or fantasy style creatures…generally stuff to play along with a storyline to…not really a Chinese takeaway; it looks good though. I made something out of your new fantasy set – figured you could use it to start a pretend game if you wanted to.’ Riley nodded and then watched as Natasha pulled out from behind her back, a large castle made out of grey brick style Lego, that had pink Castle turrets and stick on windows. At some point, Natasha had also opened a new set of plastic figurines to play with - there was even a princess figure in the top of the tower and a dragon figure coming out of the front door!

‘Wow!’ Riley’s eyes lit up and Natasha found herself smiling fondly at the childlike wonder that Riley had only so far displayed briefly in the park a few days prior. Putting the castle in front of the child, Natasha then opened the rest of the Lego out of the box and started putting some figures in front of the ‘Chinese takeaway.’ After a minute or so, Natasha told Riley to pick who she wanted to be from a few spare figures, which she did, and then Natasha looked at Riley expectantly and the girl just looked confused and tilted her head.

‘What do we do now?’

‘Hmm?’

‘Well… I finished my building already and so did you…haven’t we finished playing?’ Natasha gave the young girl a kind smile and shook her head.

‘No, now we play.’ Natasha started to make her own figure of a knight on a horse ‘gallop’ around the playset, before looking at Riley with a smirk, putting on a pretend deep regal voice.

‘Mr Callaghan is very hungry after defeating a monstrous beast and he fancies a Chinese Takeaway, do you know anywhere he could go to appease his appetite, young lady?’ Riley giggled and made her own figure of a maiden nod her head before leading the knight to her building. Natasha continued to lead the story line and offer help when it was needed, for new ideas and creations; after a while, Natasha realised that Riley was starting to come up with ideas on her own and she then took more of a back seat and played along – feeling that maybe she had helped to make her a bit happier.


	12. Snowball fight!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers take advantage of the snowfall and have some fun with Riley!  
Lots of fluff:)

The next morning, Natasha told Riley to go down to the communal kitchen to have breakfast, as she was busy sorting out the intel for an upcoming mission. Over the past week, Riley had gotten to know the Avengers a bit better and although she liked their company, she still felt quite out of place and she felt quite nervous about it; however, Natasha had reassured her that it would be fine and Riley got changed and made her way downstairs.

Awkwardly, Riley took the elevator downstairs and walked into kitchen, past some of the Avengers, as they were all downstairs already having breakfast. She made her way to the fridge, lifted a large jug of orange juice out of it and made her way to the kitchen counter, albeit wobbly and unsteady as the jug was very large.

‘Morning Kid. Where’s the super-secret red haired assassin this fine morning?’ Riley smirked at Tony, whilst attempting to pour the juice into an empty glass on the table. She liked Tony because he was very funny and although he was sarcastic and flippant, she knew he was really nice as he tended to sneak her bits of chocolate whenever Natasha was busy.

‘She’s on the phone to someone called Fury. She said I could come here to have breakfast…that’s ok right?’ Seeing the hesitancy on her face, Tony immediately nodded and pulled out a stool for her. Eating with the team had only happened really the past day or so, as Dr Banner – (who Riley had been told was the Hulk!), said that she could eat normal foods again, as her weight was improving steadily. So, although she liked the rest of the team and had been hanging out with them in her free time, eating meals with them was quite a new thing. Riley smiled and started to pour herself some juice, whilst making conversation with the team.

‘Anyway, so like I was saying. I figure that it doesn’t matter which nanoparticles I use to make your new vibranium arm Barnes, as they all came to the same conclusi…’

‘-Woah kid!’ Tony suddenly yelled. Riley gasped as the heavy jug and her glass slipped from her hand and fell to the floor; she frowned when there wasn’t a crash and then looked over at Wanda who was smiling at her, whilst putting the now empty jug and glass into the sink.

‘…oh no! I’m sorry!’ Riley was sure that she was the colour of a tomato, as Wanda give her a kind smile, and Clint got up to get some cleaning supplies, giving her a reassuring smile.

‘Don’t worry about it squirt, it’s just an accident – luckily it’s just bit of juice. Here, help me clean it up.’ Holding the wet rag, Riley began scrubbing the tiled floor with Clint and also Sam, who had gotten up to help. After it was clean, Clint poured her a new glass and then plated her up some French toast and fruit.

‘Thank you and I’m really sorry about the juice.’

‘Riley, don’t be, stuff gets spilt all the time at my house – I do have three kids, it’s fine.’ Clint shrugged and took a large bite of his waffles, smirking at Riley’s incredulous expression.

‘You have three kids? I’ve just realised that I don’t really know much about you all…’ Riley looked around and was met with smiles from the team around the kitchen counter and they then started to talk about themselves.

***

After a while, they were all standing outside in the snow as it snowed heavily, dressed in winter clothes and splitting into teams for a huge snowball fight. 

‘I know you’re not having a snowball fight without me.’ Riley whipped around at the sound of Natasha’s voice and grinned as the assassin stepped out of the Compound and into the garden, dressed in snug winter clothes with a grin on her face.

‘Ah glad you could join us Red.'

'Figured you'd all be out here when I asked Friday and she said you were all 'going to battle'. So… teams?’ They all shuffled around until they were on opposing teams. Team Waffle: Natasha, Riley, Clint, Steve, Sam VS Team Epic – Tony, Bucky, Wanda, Rhodey, Bruce.

‘Rules?’

‘No fighting, no powers and no cheating.’ Riley giggled as there were protests from multiple people and a roll of the eyes from Natasha. Sam shook his head and glared at Tony.

‘How the fuck do you cheat at a snowball fight?!’

‘Believe me, you’ll find a way Sam.’

‘Shut up Clint.’

‘Does that mean I can use knives?’

‘NO! Why would you need to use…you know what, never mind.’ Tony rubbed a hand down his face and sighed, before once again gesturing to the garden.

‘Let’s get started. Each team has ten minutes to build a fort and then it’s battle time.’ Riley tugged on Tony’s sleeve and he raised his eyebrow before looking down at her expectantly.

‘What’s up Kid? You need to pee?’ Riley blushed and shook her head before replying quietly; ‘no! I just…I’ve never actually done this before…’

‘Done what before?’

‘A snowball fight.’ Understanding hit everyone’s faces and Tony apologised for not thinking about it, which Riley dismissed, as she didn’t expect anyone to think of stuff like that. She then grinned as Clint came up behind her and nudged her, giving her a kind smile.

‘No worries – we’ll go easy on you, you’ll catch on quick, don’t worry. Just do what we do, ok?’ The young girl nodded, then walked near Natasha and tugged her gloves on tighter, before everyone got into a running stance. Steve and Tony then called the countdown and both respective teams ran in opposite directions and began to build their forts. After the forts were built, the game began and Riley bit her lip in anticipation – she was playing a game with the Avengers and everybody even had ear pieces in – like a real mission!

‘Team Waffles, do you copy?’

‘Yes! Loud and clear Romanoff!’

‘Shush, we don’t want to be seen Barton.’

‘Oh yeah sorry – I’m waiting for the signal.’

‘Good. Steve – you ready?’

‘Yes, locked and loaded.’

‘Why do we have to be called Team Waffles? It’s a sissy name, why can’t we be called team Awesom-OUCH!’

‘Shut up Sam, we’re called Team Waffles, because the Kid picked the name, now be quiet and remember the plan, before they spot us. Kid – you in position?’

‘Yep! I’m ready to strike!’

Riley was currently hiding behind a large rose bush and could see Rhodey’s feet across the pool, hiding behind a statue. When all of a sudden, Tony’s voice boomed ‘GO! FIRST TEAM WITH EVERYONE HIT ON IT LOSES!’ Immediately the ‘plan’ that Team Waffle had planned, went to shit and all hell broke loose.

Bruce was the first one to get hit in the face (of course by Natasha – who was grinning maliciously, ignoring Tony’s protests of ‘not in the face Romanoff!’) for good measure, she sent another snowball to Bruce’s chest and he fell down in a heap. She tapped her ear piece as she ran to higher ground.

_‘Hulk is down, I repeat Hulk is down. Barton where are you?’ _

_‘I fell out of the tree. Sorry Tasha. I’m tracking Barnes.’_

Natasha scowled and tried to spot members of her team (who were donning blue vests VS Tony’s who were wearing red ones). Her eyes locked on Sam and Steve, who were dodging snowballs from Tony and Wanda, running around like maniacs. Riley then came into her line of view and she grinned when she saw her successfully throw a snowball at Rhodey, hitting him in the chest and she felt a streak of pride, then tapped her ear-piece again.

_‘Good job Kid – get back into position now and help Sam and Steve out – I’m going to track Bucky with Clint! Stay hidden everyone!’ _

Approximately two minutes later, Riley was hit in the shoulder by Bucky and was out, then Wanda was hit by Natasha, who managed to snowball Bucky, who then hit Sam and Clint in unison. Riley walked to the side slumped down on a bench, as that was only set up for the people who had been ‘hit’ and therefore according to Tony – were ‘losers’. She was out of breath, but happy and she watched the rest of the game with a vague interest.

_‘Who is still alive on my team?’_

_‘Me. Tony shut up I’m concentrating on not getting shot by a snowball here!’_

_‘Can the person who spoke identify themselves with a name please?’ _

_‘Barnes.’ _

_‘ELSA! YOU’RE ALIVE!’_

_‘Not for long if you keep talking to me, I’ve got Romanoff on my tail and she’s looking pretty scary.’ _

_‘I can see Capsicle.’_

_‘I don’t care, I’m trying not get hit by hard snowballs here. Oh no…ARGHH!’ _

_‘ELSA?! WHERE ARE YOU?!’ _

_‘Fucking been shot by Natasha now, thanks a lot Stark.’ _

_‘LAST MAN STANDING! HELP!’ _

Riley and everyone on the bench were laughing their heads off, as they watched Bucky storm off, covered in snow and then saw Tony run around the garden, before being cornered by Steve and Natasha who grinned at each other and threw large snowballs at him in unison.

‘YEY!’

‘WE WON!’

‘DAMN IT!’

‘THAT WAS YOUR FAULT!’

YOU’RE JUST A SORE LOSER!’

Natasha and Steve shook Tony’s wet gloved hand, before he suddenly removed two snowballs from behind his back and hit the both of them, who were too slow to realise what was happening as they were celebrating their win. All of a sudden, it turned into one giant snowball fight and Riley enjoyed every minute of it. Grinning happily the entire time – when she and Natasha banded together and managed to take down Tony and Wanda, despite being soaked by Steve and Bucky.

Riley’s highlight was definitely when she used her powers to cover the entire team in a mound of snow and everyone started making giant igloos and snowmen, until it was time for them all to get dry and for Riley to start on her lessons for the day. She had never felt happiness like this before and she thought that maybe she could get used to this new lifestyle after all.


	13. Spiraling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley's past comes back to haunt her, but after refusing to tell Natasha about it, she overhears a conversation and arrives at the worst possible conclusion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone,  
There's a trigger in this chapter for the abuse of a minor - not described in detail but hinted at heavily at the start. Don't read if this triggers you. 
> 
> Thank you and stay safe,  
MarvelObsessedgirl3   
xx

_ He was looming over her, unbuckling his belt with that wicked grin on his face. This time would be different, he told her this but she already knew…because there was something evil lurking in his eyes this time…  _

_ She brought this on herself…her powers caused this…if she was normal then this wouldn’t be happening, but bad girls had to be punished. It was her fault… _

_ He pushed her down on the bed and laughed, as she cried and screamed. He grabbed her legs and tied her down…this time would be different and she was all alone…there was nothing that anybody could do to save her…she was his prey.  _

_ Pain _

_ So much pain _

‘-Kid! Kid wake up!’ Riley jolted awake, screaming and gasping for breath, as she felt her hands pulsate; her powers exploded out of her control and sent something…or someone flying across the room and into the wall, along with a wave of water. The young girl bit her fist to keep from screaming. 

She squeezed her eyes shut and curled up into the foetal position, trying not to cry at the fact that she had used her powers again. She was such a freak…she deserved this…she was being punished for being bad. It was her fault.

‘Ow! Damn it, that hurt. Hey, Kid are you…oh shit.’ 

Riley couldn’t hear anything other than his voice…his breathing…she didn’t recognise the familiar voice that instantly realised that there was something wrong. Riley whimpered and kept whispering ‘no…please no,’ as the images from her nightmare and memories kept flashing in front of her eyes, she could feel him on her…

‘-ley?! Riley – look at me Kid, you’re alright, you’re safe. That’s it. Breathe. Look at me.’ Riley’s eyes suddenly flew open as she heard the sound of Natasha’s voice, overpowering the echos of the sound of her memories in her head. Her brown eyes found familiar green ones, that looked concerned. Riley then subconsciously found herself glancing around the room that looked like it was spinning, waiting for him to jump out and for this all to be a horrible joke…she wasn’t safe…she was back in that house…back with him and she was all alone an-

‘-nope, don’t look over there, just look at me. There you are. It’s just me and you here. You’re in the Avengers Compound, floor 7, room 3…’ Natasha continued talking to her, but the poor girl could barely hear her voice over her own heart thundering in her chest. 

Riley glanced around Natasha and she saw that at some point the lights had been turned on and that there was a sizeable hole in the wall opposite – along with a small puddle of water underneath it and a smashed glass and water jug. She then looked at Natasha and saw that she was quite wet and there was a small cut on the top of her arm. Riley’s eyes widened and she found herself unable to breathe again. Natasha followed her gaze and instantly tried to console her.

‘Hey, you’re alright, it’s no big deal. Here, watch me, breathe Kid, come on.’ After a few minutes of coaching Riley through some breathing exercises, Natasha was relieved to see that she had calmed down considerably with her breathing and shaking, although she had silent tears running down her face now. 

‘Wanna talk about it?’ 

‘No.’ Natasha nodded in understanding, she had barely known the child for a week and so they were still getting to know each other – she wouldn’t want to divulge her deepest secrets to a stranger either. She wondered if Riley had had another bad dream about ‘the man’ who she had referred to a few nights prior – when she had camped out in the kitchen; Natasha pursed her lips and made a mental note to read up about possible child abuse and how to talk to her about it, without Riley feeling like she was prying into her life.

‘I hurt…your arm…’ Natasha blinked and looked down at the small cut on the top of her arm, shrugging. 

‘You didn’t – I just caught it on some of the glass. I’ll get some cleaning supplies to sort that out, don’t worry about it. It was an accident.’ Riley shook her head and her breath hitched, as she looked up at Natasha and her bottom lip wobbled.

‘It wasn’t an accident! I wanted to hurt you…well not you exactly…I just thought...I thought you were somebody else…and I…I got scared! I’m…I’m sorry…N…Natasha!’

‘I know. It’s ok. Everything is fine, I promise.’ Natasha said in a soothing voice, reaching over and rubbing the distraught child’s shoulder, as Riley shook her head once again and furled into herself; she then started crying into her pillow, pulling her blanket over her, as if trying to hide away from the world. Natasha moved over slightly and awkwardly ran her fingers through the child’s hair, hoping to provide some comfort for her.

‘Do you want to talk about it? It might make you feel better, I’ll try and help if I can.’ Natasha repeated, trying to get Riley to talk to her, so she could try to help her. Riley shuffled away from Natasha and her breath hitched.

‘N…no. Pl…please…just…just go.’ Reluctant to leave her in such a state but choosing to respect her wishes in an effort to establish trust, Natasha nodded and stood up. 

‘I’ll be in my office if you need me, ok? Just tell Friday if you need anything. I’ll come and check on you in a bit. Don’t go near the glass, I’ll clean it up later on.’ Riley didn’t say anything, apart from a small nod and Natasha took that as her que to leave. 

Riley heard the door close softly and she allowed herself to completely break down, curling further into her mound of blankets, as her nightmare started to fade away.

After a while, her stomach rumbled and she reluctantly sat up in bed, scrubbing away the cold tear tracks on her face. Sniffing, she swung her legs out of bed and padded her way to the door, looking at the time – surprised that it was only 8am. She then made her way to the kitchen on Natasha’s floor, confused as to why Natasha wasn’t waiting for her for breakfast, like she had done the past week; then she remembered what she had told her earlier; Riley then walked right to the end of the corridor to Natasha’s office .

***

Riley quietly pushed open the door and stuck her head into Natasha’s office, wanting to see if she could make herself breakfast that morning – not wanting to be a bother after the events of that morning, or ask if she could go to the main kitchen with the rest of the Avengers, when she saw the back of Natasha’s head by the large window on the other side of the room. The assassin was speaking quietly on the phone whilst looking out at the snowy garden of the Compound, she seemed stressed about something.

‘-no. That isn’t what I meant. I just can’t do this Fury…it’s such a problem and I’m not qualified at all for this.’ Despite holding her phone steadily, Riley could see that Natasha was breathing somewhat unevenly as she listened to whatever this ‘Fury’ person said. The girl wondered what problem had gotten Natasha so on edge and she hid behind the door, listening.

‘-I understand that, however, Barton is qualified for his situation, I’m not! What do you mean there’s no qualifications for this? Of course, there is! Okay…fine… so there isn’t – but I’m really crap at it! No…I am, Nick! Fine - so what do you do when a child sends you flying across the room in a swirl of water after a nightmare, that I can only assume was a memory and then refuses to talk to you about it?! No, don’t be stupid, of course I want h…’ Riley pressed her hands over her ears, not wanting to hear the rest of the conversation, as her heart plummeted and she felt like there was no oxygen in the air. 

_ It was clear that Natasha didn’t want her anymore. She called her ‘a problem’.  _

Riley bit her lip, hard enough to draw blood and she all but ran back into her bedroom. Quickly pulling on jeans and a purple hoodie, Riley scraped her hair into a messy bun and then looked in the mirror. Looking at her reflection, all she could see was the insecurities she felt about herself, her foster family and the incident that had happened; all the nightmares and the fear, the loneliness and the sadness. Angrily grabbing a black marker from her desk, she scribbled all over the reflection of her face on the mirror and made her mind up instantly.

Hearing but choosing to ignore the sudden sounds of thunder overhead and the flash of lightning outside her window, Riley pulled out a piece of paper and a pen and scrawled a note on it, before pulling out her old duffle bag that had been hidden under her bed. Riley hastily blinked away the tears in her eyes, not noticing that the lightning and thunder had stopped and instead the sky had turned a murky grey and had started drizzling. She then threw a change of clothes into the bag, along with her Alice in Wonderland book and the figurines that she and Natasha had played with a few days prior. 

Hoisting her bag on her bag, she opened her bedroom door, tiptoed down the corridor and then ran down the stairs of the fire-escape. 

Riley then crouched at the bottom of the escape and listened for the sounds of any of the team; not hearing any sounds at all, she then snuck through the main entry way and out into the Compound garden. Taking one last look at the Compound, Riley bowed her head as suddenly the anger turned to sadness and started to take over her at the chance that once again she had messed everything up. Sniffing, she tried to ignore the rain that had started to now fall heavily. She turned away and made a beeline for the fence at the Compound’s boundary that she had walked through a few days prior with Natasha – feeling utterly miserable and hating herself more with every footstep she took.


	14. The Storm inside

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All of Riley's emotions rear their head properly for the first time and she finds herself at a loss for what to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!  
Hope you're all keeping safe! This chapter was going to be about 4,000 words in total, so I've split it into two chapters for easier reading! This is part one and part two will be uploaded soon.  
Please let me know what you think! 
> 
> Love  
MarvelObsessedgirl3   
xx

Natasha hung up the phone and glanced at the time. She had only left Riley for about half an hour and she decided to go down to the communal kitchen to bring them both up breakfast – as she didn’t think that Riley would want to socialise that morning after what had happened earlier.

Taking the elevator down to the communal floor, Natasha walked out and grinned as she smelt Steve’s chocolate chip pancakes and saw Sam and Wanda cooking a couple of omelettes.

‘What’s on the menu this morning?’ Natasha teased, pouring herself a cup of coffee, as Clint and Tony walked in and took seats at the kitchen counter, helping themselves to toast and pastries, smiling at Natasha, as she stood there, drinking her coffee.

‘The usual.’ Steve replied, shrugging as he effortlessly flipped a pancake and watched it sizzle in the pan, as Natasha hummed.

‘Can I maybe steal a couple of pancakes for the Kid?’

‘Sure, these are almost finished. There’s some orange juice somewhere too. I gather she’s not coming down this morning… is she ok?’

‘That is yet to be determined. Nothing that your famous chocolate chip pancakes can’t sort out though, Rogers.’

‘That is true.’ Natasha chuckled and held out a plate, as Steve gently placed a few pancakes on it and gave her a small pot of syrup too.

‘Thanks Steve. Don’t forget I’m going to beat your ass in training later.’

‘Whatever stops the tears Nat.’ Natasha playfully punched him lightly on the arm and stood up.

‘Oh and Romanoff?’

‘Hmm?’

‘If you go out early – make sure you close the front door; there was a draft when I came down from training a bit ago.’ Natasha frowned and tilted her head.

‘I didn’t go outside. It was probably Sam if he went on his morning run.’

‘No, he was with me training. We came up and the door was ajar.’

‘Oh…that’s unusual. Well – just tell Friday to remind everyone then.’ Steve nodded and started cooking a new round of pancakes, when Natasha walked past Clint and muttered in his ear.

‘Can I have a word?’ Clint broke off from talking to Tony and nodded – raising an eyebrow at the seriousness in her expression. They both walked into the living room, so they couldn’t be overheard and Clint looked at her expectantly, leaning on the doorframe.

‘S’up? Problem with the Kid?’

‘Something like that.’ Natasha shrugged and took a sip of her coffee, debating how best to go about this, without it seeming as though she was weak and needing help yet again.

‘Well, what’s going on?’

‘She shoved me into a wall earlier, after she woke up from a nightmare.’

‘Ouch, been there…well not shoved into a wall…I’ve been hit in the face though. It’s normal…kids have nightmares, hell, adults have nightmares.’

‘I know that you moron. What isn’t normal, is that she used water – to essentially trap me and throw me into a wall and a pile of glass. She won’t talk to me Clint, I’ve tried everything. I’m honestly hitting walls at this point – literally!’

‘You’ve tried talking to her?’

‘Obviously. I even played a pretend game with her which she loved!’

‘That’s good – all part of looking after a Kid. You just have to keep trying and she’ll open up to you.’ Natasha huffed and readjusted the tray of pancakes in her hand.

‘I have tried everything. I feel like I’m failing her. I know that she doesn’t trust me yet and she’s never had an adult in her corner – I get it; but I just want to help her and she won’t let me. It’s so infuriating.’

‘Tasha. I’ve known you for years and if I know one thing, it’s that you don’t fail at anything. There must be something that you haven’t tried.’

‘I don’t do emotional stuff.’ Natasha immediately replied, knowing where the conversation was going.

‘I didn’t say you had to.’

‘So, what do you mean then?’

‘She’s a little Kid. She probably doesn’t even know all her emotions yet – let alone how to handle them. You said she enjoyed playing with you right? Why not try and get her to open up through pretend play?’ Raising an eyebrow, Natasha looked at Clint sceptically, who shrugged.

‘Hey – it’s a good parenting technique for you.’ Her eyes flashed and she felt her stomach plummet at that thought.

‘Parenting?’

‘Well…loco parentis in your case – you know, as you’re her temporary guardian – not a parent.’ Clint said hurriedly, seeing the panic rise in Natasha’s eyes, relieved when it faded away as quickly as it came.

‘Hmm…guess I’ll try that then or something similar anyway. Thanks - good chat, Barton.’ She gave Clint an appreciative smile, which he returned, before Natasha made her way back upstairs to her floor to see Riley.

***

Riley had made her way to the front gate of the Compound and had come to a pretty substantial problem. She didn’t have clearance to leave and the gate was refusing to open for her, despite her continuously pressing the button. She frantically looked around for any other way out of the Compound and saw the woods in the distance; maybe she could climb over the wall and leave that way? Making a run for it, the girl pulled up her hood and ran over to the wooded area, cringing as she felt mud and snow squelch around in her new trainers from the snow that was still coming down heavily around her.

Pushing her way through thick and thin branches and bushes of nettles, Riley made her way into the wood that went all the way around the Compound’s boundaries, until she could no longer see the large building of the Compound, as her vision was blocked by all the big oak trees that surrounded her. She slowed down and took a few deep breaths, before adjusting her duffle bag on her back and continuing her run through the wood, trying to ignore the distant rumble of thunder and the snow fall.

After a few minutes, Riley found herself in a bit of an opening, by a small stream – where the water was raging angrily due to the wind. Riley looked around and listened, but when she didn’t hear anybody following her, she decided to take a break – just to catch her breath and formulate a plan for what she was going to do when she left the Compound.

Sitting down, under the shelter of a large oak tree, Riley pulled her knees close to her chest and took off her hood, happy that the leaves provided a sort of umbrella from the snow. She opened her sodden bag, hoping to find something to help her with a plan, when she pulled out the two figurines that she and Natasha had played with a few days prior. She felt an unwelcome lump form in her throat, and she swallowed hard, before clutching the figurines in her hand and tossing them into the stream; where they landed with a small _‘plop’_.

_How could she have messed everything up again?! Why didn’t anybody want her…was she so unlovable that she would be alone forever? _

It was like all the bad emotions she had felt in her entire life and had compartmentalised, had suddenly roared into life and were slowly building and suffocating her from the inside out. She had never felt sadness and anger like this and she found that she couldn’t stop. She was fed up of hiding everything from everyone – for fear of being seen as weak or as a burden and for the first time in her life, Riley allowed herself to fully feel everything that she had never allowed herself to before.

Her fists clenched, as she then thought about the incident from her foster family…and her powers and the fact that she was a freak and the fact that nobody liked her and that she had hurt Natasha and that she was a monster…

Riley watched in horror as the water from the stream started properly raging, whilst the ground beneath her started to shake and the wind picked up.

She gasped in horror. She had never lost control before like this and she instantly tried to get her breathing under control. She started to breathe heavily as she could feel her powers pulsating in her hands, and she then realised that the more angrier and scared that she felt, the stronger her power became; they were tied to her emotions and right now, her emotions were like a storm and that is exactly what she was creating with her powers.

‘No…no stop! No! STOP!’ The girl yelled in fright, standing up and backing away, until her back hit the tree. She whimpered as the ground continued to shake violently and the wind picked up, making her cheeks red, as the water sloshed around loudly.

Riley bit her lip to stop from crying out in fear that she couldn’t control this and that it was once again all because of her powers. A sob escaped her involuntarily and she put her hands up in front of her face in an effort to protect herself. Riley watched in horror as the water waves grew in size and the wind continued to pick up speed, whistling around her like a mini storm. She felt completely out of her depth and wished (not for the first time in her life), that she could be somebody else and not be scared anymore.


	15. The Storm inside Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha, Clint and Wanda find Riley - but are they too late to get through to her?

‘Kid?’

‘Damn this Kid has some stamina! Who else is searching apart from us?’

‘No-one yet. I told them to wait. Stark is going to fly up top to get an overhead visual with Sam, if we don’t find her soon though. The others will assist on foot.’

‘This weather is getting really bad Natasha. We need to be careful.’

‘I know. Keep looking.’

‘Riley?’

‘Where are you Kid?’ The young girl whimpered again and felt her powers pulsate once more. The ground shuddered and she saw the mud start to separate as the earth began to shift under her feet; when she heard a rustling behind her.

‘Have you found her Nat?’ Riley peered out from behind the tree and saw Clint, Wanda, and Natasha walking into the small opening, covered in snow, soaking wet. As soon as she peered out, Natasha immediately spotted her and visibly relaxed, before stiffening as she assessed the situation before her. Her eyes darted from the scared looking child, to the powerful stream and the shifting ground.

Natasha said something quickly in a language to Clint that Riley didn’t understand and he replied just as quickly. Wanda also said something in the same language and nodded at Natasha who nodded back.

Riley looked fearfully at Natasha, as she held up her hands in a placating gesture, whilst walking towards her.

‘No! Don’t! I…I don’t want to hurt you! Go a…away!’ Natasha stilled, as the ground shook more violently and Riley stumbled slightly with the force of it.

‘You won’t hurt me, Kid.’

‘I…I did before, after my nightmare.’ She replied, her voice breaking slightly on the last word.

‘I know, but you didn’t know it was me.’ Natasha replied easily, taking another step forward, noticing that the snow and wind had slowed slightly. Riley bit her lip and looked past Natasha towards Clint and Wanda, who were talking quietly to each other, staying by the entrance to the clearing. She realised what was happening and she felt her anger surge back up.

‘They’re scared of me... aren’t they? AREN’T THEY?!’ She yelled, no longer caring that the snowfall was bad again and the wind had picked back up. Clint and Wanda were now looking at Riley and Natasha and had started moving closer. Riley felt trapped all of a sudden.

‘No. They aren’t scared of you, they just don’t want you to be overwhelmed; so they’re staying over there.’ Natasha said – exaggerating the last few words loudly, so that Wanda and Clint could hear; they both stopped walking and stayed where they were. Riley looked at her and nodded slightly. Natasha stepped forward once more and the young girl stepped back, trying not to panic as she heard the thunder rumble overhead. She was capable of really hurting someone and that thought scared her; Natasha’s voice brought her back to reality.

‘Kid, it’s just me, ok? I need you to take a few deep breaths and try to calm down a bit.’

‘I’ve already tried that!’ Riley shouted angrily, her fists clenched tightly. Natasha decided to try and distract her, by talking and she gestured to the duffle-bag on the ground.

‘Going somewhere?’ The girl nodded in response and shivered, realising for the first time that it was very cold outside.

‘Yes.’

‘Where?’ Biting her lip in realisation that she had no idea at all where she was going to go, Riley bowed her head.

‘I don’t know yet.’ She replied honestly, watching as Natasha took another step forward. She was now close enough to touch Riley if she wanted to. She watched as Natasha held her hand out for her.

‘Let me help you.’ Tears prickled in Riley’s eyes and she shook her head, before stepping backwards once more.

‘No. You don’t want me.’ Natasha frowned.

‘Why would you think that?’

‘Because I heard you! So, go away!’ Racking her head for what had happened that morning, Natasha then realised why Riley was currently in such a state – she had overheard and also misheard the conversation she had had with Fury earlier.

‘I never said that. You clearly didn’t listen to the whole conversation and have misunderstood. How about we go inside and have a chat, just you and me?’

‘No.’ Nodding and debating how best to go about this, Natasha pointed to Riley’s clenched fists and decided to try a different method on calming her down.

‘Close your eyes.’ She instructed, giving the girl a gentle but firm look. Riley frowned at the sudden change in topic and opened her mouth to object, when Natasha shook her head and repeated the command.

‘Close your eyes.’ Riley did so and she listened as Natasha started talking to her.

‘Visualise your powers. Pick a colour and try to imagine what it looks like coming out of your body; out of your fingers and hands and mind. Tell me what you see.’

Riley focussed and felt her entire body shake with the force of her powers, she wondered if she was going to explode with the anger and sadness that was pulsating through her and she felt scared again. She didn’t want to hurt anyone…

‘Concentrate.’ Riley’s eyes opened and she glared at Natasha.

‘I can’t!’

‘Yes, you can. Try again. Focus.’ Once more, Riley closed her eyes and this time she managed to visualise her powers and she concentrated on seeing the colour of it.

‘What do you see?’

‘It’s…blue and it’s…out of control.’ Riley said, her voice shaking as she felt her powers pulsate throughout her entire body. Unbeknowngst to Riley, Natasha and the others were seeing tendrils of blue sprout out of her clenched fists – seeing the physical form of her powers for the first time. Natasha knew that Riley hadn’t seen it’s physical form yet, because she clearly had never lost control like this before and hadn’t seen the full extent of her powers.

‘Ok. I want you to visualise something that makes you happy and concentrate on that. Allow yourself to be fully in that moment, or place.’ Riley did so, not telling Natasha what her happy moment was and she felt her powers start to dull slightly.

‘Right, good. Now, open your fists.’ She instructed, ignoring the horrified expression on the little girl’s face, as her eyes shot open and she looked at Natasha in horror.

‘No! I’ll hurt you!’

‘You won’t, unless you want to. I’m not scared of you Riley. You just need to learn to control your powers, not be scared of them.’

‘I am though!’

‘I know. I’m going to show you, that you needn’t be. They’re a part of you. You are completely in control here, even though you might not feel like you are. Look at your hands and open them.’ Riley shook her head immediately and for the first time since opening her eyes, looked down at her fists and at the blue tendrils that were slowly spiralling around her hands and she inhaled sharply and started panicking again.

‘I can’t do this! I’m…I’m a…’ Riley paused, not wanting to open up about how she really felt about herself and she blinked the tears away once more.

‘-a freak? A monster? I got your note.’ Natasha pulled out of her pocket a crumpled and very wet note that Riley had left in her bedroom earlier.

Blushing slightly, Riley nodded and looked at the tendrils surrounding her clenched fists, with sadness in her eyes, as Natasha stepped forward and reached out, ignoring Riley flinch.

‘No, you are not.’ Natasha put her hands over Riley’s and gently opened her fists; she watched with relief as the weather instantly settled and Riley stopped shaking with the force of her powers, as the blue tendrils slowly disappeared.

‘You good?’ Riley blinked in shock and nodded slightly, looking at her open hands, covered by Natasha’s bigger ones.

‘How did you do that?!’ She asked in surprise, as Natasha turned around and smiled at Clint and Wanda who returned it and walked back the way they came.

‘I’ve learnt a few techniques, living with people who have similar issues at times.’ Riley nodded and mumbled a small ‘thank you,’ as Natasha gave her a small pat on her shoulder.

‘I’m not coming back though.’ Riley said firmly, as Natasha hummed and raised an eyebrow.

‘Ok.’ Riley frowned at the simple reply, expecting Natasha to put up more of a fight; when the assassin gestured to the ground near Riley.

‘Can I sit with you then, whilst you figure a plan out of where you’re running away to? I’m pretty tired from trekking through the woods – bet you are too, after all that?’ Tilting her head in contemplation for a moment, Riley nodded slowly again and watched as Natasha moved over to her and sat down on the muddy snowy ground and stared out at the stream, a completely calm expression on her face, as if they did this all the time. Natasha gestured to the ground next to her and Riley sat down, her back leaning against the oak tree like it did earlier, as they both sat in a somewhat comfortable silence, broken by the quiet ripples of the water in the stream and the sound of birds overhead.

‘I saw what you did to your mirror.’ Natasha said nonchalantly, after a few minutes, pretending not to notice Riley wiping her eyes with her jacket sleeve. ‘Want to tell me why?’ Riley didn’t want to talk to her, but after all that, she felt like she owed Natasha and explanation.

‘I…I’m just tired of being me.’ Natasha hummed in response but didn’t reply, letting Riley tell her as much or as little as she wanted to.

‘…um…I don’t know. I…I’m just tired of my powers…like not being able to control them properly…and of just feeling like…’ She broke off, staring at the stream, trying to put her thoughts into words.

‘-whenever you look into a mirror, all you see are your insecurities and the fact that you regard yourself as a monster?’ Riley’s eyes widened and she turned and nodded at Natasha, who pursed her lips and said thoughtfully, ‘we aren’t so different you know.’

‘How?’ Riley replied, picking at a thread on her jacket sleeve. Natasha frowned slightly, realising that if she wanted Riley to open up, then she would have to do the same – not a lot, but enough to try and get her to trust her.

‘I didn’t have the most…conventional childhood. I grew up in a place called the Red Room – a place where they train you to be an assassin. I never had a proper family or was praised in anyway – except for gaining the title of ‘Black Widow’. I was the definition of a monster. I killed, because I was told to. No morals, no regrets, no emotions. So, believe me when I say that you are not a monster, Kid. You just need to learn to control your powers, but also come to terms with your past and your emotions – as it all affects one another, like a scale. Too much to one side and it tips. You need to find a balance and we can all help you with that. You are not alone anymore. I know that you’ve never had someone looking out for you, but we are all here to stay, but you’ve got to start letting us in to help you and not push us all away.’ Riley nodded and listened intently, once again surprised by how Natasha seemed as if she was inside her head.

‘-by the sounds of things, you’ve not had a conventional childhood either and I get how that can make you feel out of place and lonely at times. However, I need you to know, that I never said I didn’t want you on the phone, I actually said that I did – but you must have stopped listening by that point. All I was saying, was that I didn’t know how to help you with your nightmares and I just needed reminding of why I took you in, in the first place.’

‘Because you felt sorry for me and wanted to teach me how to use my powers when I’m older.’ Riley said bitterly, throwing a stone in the stream. Natasha reached over and tilted Riley’s chin towards her, before looking at her seriously.

‘No. I didn’t let you be put into the system, because I saw a part of myself in you, that I knew I had to help. You reminded me, of a younger version of myself in many ways; powers aside. You close off from people to avoid being hurt, you are constantly at war with yourself and try to push anyone away who tries to get close to you, for fear of them leaving or betraying you, like everyone else has done in your life. You’ve had to grow up a hell of a lot sooner than most kids your age and despite all that, you still try to a better version of yourself. You are not a freak, a monster or an… ‘abomanition,’ as you wrote in your letter.’ Natasha smirked and handed the note back to Riley who blushed again.

‘I just…I thought you didn’t want me…’

‘I know, but I do. That, is why you mustn’t overhear conversations – as things can be mis-understood.’ Natasha reprimanded softly, as Riley nodded and screwed up the paper, before shoving it in her bag to throw away later, when she realised that she had thrown her figurines into the water and she felt guilty.

‘Penny for your thoughts?’ Natasha asked gently, as Riley bit her lip and pointed to the stream sadly.

‘I…I threw the figurines in there…the ones we played with a few days ago…I’m sorry. I was just…angry.’ Natasha nodded and then shrugged.

‘Well, it’s just water, you can get them back.’

‘I can’t swim though and the storm probably washed them away now…’ Riley said, confused. Natasha turned to look at her with a raised eyebrow.

‘Oh, well it must be someone else that I know who can control water then.’ Her eyes lighting up as she realised what Natasha meant, Riley grinned for a moment and then her face fell.

‘What?’

‘I don’t know how.’ The little girl replied sadly, looking at her palms. Natasha stood up and held a hand out for Riley, who took it and looked at her expectantly.

‘If your powers are anything like Wanda’s – they come from your emotions, but also from your thoughts. If you want the figures hard enough, you’ll be able to get them back. The stream isn’t that deep, so they wouldn’t have gone very far. Focus on what they look like and pull them out of the water.’ Riley pointed her hands at the stream, palms open and she gasped loudly when she saw small speckles of blue spark out and then fade away.

‘Look! Did you see that?!’ She turned to Natasha with a shocked expression on her face. The assassin smirked and pointed at the stream.

‘I did. Try again. Concentrate.’ Riley did so and after a few minutes of trying, two figurines flew out of the water and into her hands.

‘I did it!’ Riley said excitedly, looking at her fingers as the blue tendrils once again disappeared.

‘Good job.’ Natasha praised, watching as Riley glanced between her hands that held the figurines and the forgotten duffle-bag on the floor.

‘Are you ready to go back now?’ Riley then blinked and looked at Natasha indignantly, realising that the entire time, Natasha had been plotting on getting her to go back to the Compound.

‘You distracted me from thinking about my plan!’

‘Did I?’ Natasha replied in a pretend shocked voice.

‘Yes! What if I don’t want to go back?!’

‘Rule one of being a spy – don’t let yourself get distracted. Also, if you really wanted to leave, you would have done by now.’ Natasha replied, smirking, as Riley nodded in defeat and then shuffled her feet awkwardly.

‘Am I allowed to come back?’ She asked in a small voice, watching as Natasha took off her jacket.

‘Of course you are. I’m not going to make you live out here, Kid. You are not on your own anymore, ok?’ Riley nodded and then frowned as Natasha handed her large winter coat to her.

‘Here, you look freezing.’ Riley shook her head.

‘What about you? Won’t you be cold?!’

‘I used to live in Russia, believe me, I’m fine. Come on, I think we could both use some of my hot chocolate mix.’ Natasha helped Riley put on the coat and she picked up the duffle bag from the ground.

‘You ready to head back now?’ Riley nodded and smiled as Natasha tweaked her nose playfully, before leading the way back, walking in a comfortable silence.

Natasha knew that she had a long way to go with Riley, but after the events of that morning, she felt like she had started to be trusted a lot more by the little girl and that Riley finally understood that she wasn’t alone anymore. Also, Natasha would deny it to anyone who saw, that Riley even held her hand as they walked back to the Compound together.


	16. The Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley finally tells Natasha everything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone,  
**TRIGGER - This chapter deals with brief details about the rape of a minor and general abuse. **  
Please don't read if this triggers you.
> 
> Stay Strong,  
MarvelObsessedgirl3  
xx

Riley awkwardly swung her pajama clad legs, as she sat on the sofa and waited for Natasha to come back. She looked out of the window and shivered slightly as she watched it snow lightly, despite having changed into clean pajamas and currently being curled up under a large fluffy blue blanket, curtesy of Natasha.

After the long walk back to the Compound, they had both cleaned up – with Natasha allowing Riley to spend the day in pajamas, as lessons were cancelled for the day, due to the events of that morning; she had given her free time all day. Riley still wondered if she had made a mistake in coming back and not running away, but deep down, she knew that she was better off here than back on the streets by herself.

She had bumped into Natasha after having gotten changed and the assassin had practically wrapped her in a fluffy blanket and led her over to the sofa – saying that she looked peaky and she didn’t want her to fall ill, as she went to make hot chocolate to warm them both up. Riley couldn’t help but feel an unfamiliar warm feeling in her stomach after that moment, as she realised that for the first time in her life, that an adult actually cared about her.

‘Hot chocolate is served. Don’t tell Clint, but I may or may not, have used the last of his marshmallows.’ Natasha walked into the room and placed a large mug of steaming hot chocolate in front of Riley, whose mouth gaped open in longing at the sweet smell; she remembered the only other time she had had the special hot chocolate – on her first night, just over a week ago. Natasha smirked at the look on the girl’s face and she sat down on the other end of the sofa, holding her own cup. She flicked on a random children’s film to provide some quiet background noise.

‘Make sure you don’t spill any, Stark would have my head if you spilt hot chocolate on the white leather sofa. Here’s the remote if you want to watch anything, I just need to answer some emails.’ Riley nodded, watching as Natasha put the remote on the coffee table in front of them. Riley then carefully took a sip of her drink, licking her lips in satisfaction which made Natasha chuckle softly, as she typed quickly on her phone.

Riley looked at the film on the TV and decided that she didn’t really want to watch anything; she was fine looking outside, finding the snowfall calming. The assassin periodically looked up from her phone at the little girl, who seemed younger than she had done previously, dressed in pajamas and cuddled up in a large blanket, watching the snow fall and sipping her hot chocolate from time to time.

After a while of comfortable silence, apart from the sounds of the TV, Natasha put down her phone, as she had finally finished answering emails and such. She then looked to see what film was on and Natasha realised that it was an adaptation of Cinderella. She thought that the mice looked ridiculous, thinking that the original animation that Lila Barton had made her watch a few months ago, was a lot better than this. Natasha then glanced at the time, surprised to see that it was almost lunchtime.

After a few minutes, Natasha decided to ask Riley if she fancied going downstairs to the communal kitchen to eat, when she heard a small sniffle and saw that the little girl had a tear rolling down her face, as she stared at the TV, unblinking, completely frozen in place.

Natasha’s stomach plummeted at the sight and she was also aware that there were tiny blue tendrils coming out of the girl’s fingers, as she absentmindedly stroked the fluffy blanket – in an effect to self soothe, Natasha noted. She then sprung into action, crouching down in front of Riley, who looked at her with her big teary brown eyes. Natasha opened her mouth to ask if she was alright, when Riley started speaking in a pleading tone.

‘P…please…turn…turn it…it off.’ Riley pointed at the TV, her breath hitching. Natasha immediately glanced at the TV to see what had gotten her so worked up about the film and she saw that it was the part where Cinderella was locked in her room. Putting two and two together, realising that it must have reminded the child of something from her past that had clearly negatively affected her, Natasha instantly reached for the remote, turned it off and then turned back to Riley, who was trying not to cry.

‘Kid?’

Before Natasha could react, the little girl launched herself at the assassin and clung to her. Stumbling slightly with the sudden unexpected weight, Natasha quickly pulled Riley close to her, as she started to cry.

‘Shhh…shhh…you’re okay. Shhh...’ Natasha debated what to do and decided to just go with her instincts. So, she stopped crouching and stood up effortlessly whilst carrying Riley, who subconsciously wrapped her legs around the assassin’s waist, continuing to cling to her, as she whimpered. Natasha then sat back down on the sofa and readjusted the child, who was still clinging to her tightly, so that she was now sitting on her lap, as she tucked her face into the crook of Natasha’s neck and continued to cry.

Rubbing small circles into her back, she softly murmured reassurances to Riley, who continued to sob, loud heart wrenching cries; looking down at the little girl, Natasha was reminded just how young she really was. After a few minutes, of simply holding her and continuing to talk in a soothing voice to her, Natasha heard Riley’s cries subside and the girl moved her head and looked up at Natasha whilst blushing, as she realised that she had just thrown herself at the worlds deadliest assassin and was currently crying on her.

‘I…shouldn’t have…I…I’m sorry.’ Riley blinked as more tears rolled down her cheeks and she made to stand up. However, Natasha shook her head and held her close; she carefully used the pad of her thumbs to wipe away the stray tears on Riley’s rosy cheeks and gave her a kind smile.

‘Don’t be. It’s completely fine.’ Natasha replied, as she contemplated how to go about this - not wanting to pry but also wanting to understand what had upset Riley, so she could try to help her.

‘Do you want to tell me why you’re sad? I’m a good listener.’ Riley bit her lip and pointed at the TV. She then spoke in a small trembling voice – that Natasha had only heard once before, the day after she met her, when she had run away for the first time and had opened up to her about how she was feeling about Natasha being her new temporary guardian.

‘…that girl…she was…locked in…in her room.’ Natasha nodded and brushed a few loose curls off Riley’s forehead.

‘Yes, she was.’

‘…it wasn’t f…fair. She… didn’t do anything…wr…wrong! She must have been…so sad and…and lonely. How can…people b…be so mean?!’ The assassin knew instantly that this wasn’t about the film; Riley hadn’t just gotten upset over a fictional character – it must have triggered a memory. There was clearly something else wrong and she realised that Riley was trying to tell her in her own way. Pondering how best to answer the question, Natasha sighed softly and rubbed the girl’s back, hoping to provide some comfort for her, as Riley once again tucked her head in the crook of Natasha’s neck, her breath coming out in soft hitches, as she tried to stop crying.

‘Some people think that their cruel actions are justified and so they don’t feel bad about it, no matter how their actions affect others in the process. Just like in the film, the Step Mother and the Step Sisters were jealous of Cinderella and tried to make her as miserable as they were by making her into a servant and locking her away, so they would feel better about themselves, knowing that they had made her sad.’ Riley nodded against her chest and they sat in silence for a few moments, until Riley’s small voice spoke up again.

‘Do you think…Cinderella managed to…to escape?’ Natasha nodded, understanding that the child had only ever seen snippets of movies and so she wasn’t familiar with the story of Cinderella.

‘Yes. Her friends – the mice, helped her to escape and she went on to live a happy life with the Prince.’ Riley looked up at Natasha as she listened and then she frowned softly.

‘Natasha?’

‘Hmm?’

‘What would happen…to the…the bad people in real life?’ Eyes furrowing slightly, Natasha pursed her lips and tilted her head.

‘The Step-Mother and the Step-Sisters?’ She asked for clarification, as Riley nodded.

‘Well, if this was real, then mice and birds couldn’t talk and sing obviously, however, I assume that if charges were pressed, then the authorities would be informed and they would be punished accordingly.’ At the child’s confused expression, Natasha remembered she was talking to an 11 year old and amended her sentence.

‘They would have been arrested for abuse.’ Natasha said simply, her green eyes looking at the child piercingly, as if looking right through her. She saw Riley’s facial expression morph into one of sadness, before she realised that the assassin was still looking at her and she bowed her head and stared determinedly at her fingernails, refusing to meet Natasha’s eyes.

‘Is there anything that you want to talk to me about, Riley?’ The little girl bit her lip and continued to stare at her fingernails, her entire body suddenly rigid with anxiety, as she sat on Natasha’s lap and the assassin felt her start to tremble again as she spoke barely above a whisper.

‘Will…will I stop…stop having nightmares and…and being scared…if…if I do?’ Natasha gave her a sad smile.

‘I’m not sure.’ She replied honestly, unsure about the extent of Riley’s past, although she had some ideas about what had happened with her foster family, from the snippets of things that Riley had already told her. Riley looked disheartened at this and Natasha quickly added, ‘it will make you feel better though.’

‘If…If I tell you…you something…will you…promise not to…to look at me any differently?’

‘I promise. Take as long as you need, Kid.’ Natasha felt Riley’s shoulders start to shake again, as she rested her head on her shoulder, as she tried to calm herself down enough so she could speak; Natasha continued to rub her back in a comforting manner.

‘…my foster f…family used to…beat m…me…and I was…sad all the…the time.’ Feeling her heartbeat quicken at the sudden anger that had flared up inside of her at those people, Natasha took a breath to calm herself and spoke to Riley, in as gentle a voice as she could do.

‘I’m really sorry to hear that, Riley. That must have been very scary for you.’ Riley nodded and her breath hitched, as she decided that she could finally trust Natasha and that she wanted to tell her about the incident that had haunted her for the past two months. Natasha knew that that wasn’t what Riley wanted to tell her, as she looked like she was having an internal battle over something; so Natasha stayed silent, letting Riley tell her as much or as little as she wanted – continuing to rub the child’s back gently. After a couple of seconds, Riley spoke up again in that same small scared voice.

‘Remember when…when I told you what they did to m…me when I had a b…bath a few t…times?’

‘Yes, I do.’

‘…um…well that…that wasn’t everything that they…they did to…to me...’ Riley then started crying again and pushed her face into the crook of Natasha’s neck, as the assassin shushed her quietly and rocked her slightly from side to side, trying to get her to calm down.

‘Everything is alright. You’re safe, ok? You can tell me as little or as much as you want.’ She said in a gentle voice, seeing the distress that this conversation was causing to the little girl, who took a shaky breath and tried to talk again.

‘…the r…reason…I…I ran…ran away…from m…my foster…family… was because…because…’ Riley broke off as a sob overtook her and Natasha continued to shush her quietly.

‘It’s alright, you’re doing really good. Take your time.’ After a few minutes, Riley looked up at Natasha through her tears.

‘…one d…day…everyone had gone to the shop… my…my foster f…father he…he hurt m…me in…in a different w…way than…than usual…and then I…I stole some…some money that n…night and…ran away…then I went b…back a few days l…later but they…they’d m…moved and I didn’t know wh…what to do…so I stayed on…on the streets.’

Despite not wanting to pry into Riley’s past, Natasha knew that she needed to find out the extent of her abuse and putting on a calm expression, despite feeling sick inside, Natasha gently spoke to Riley, who was sobbing uncontrollably into her shoulder, clinging to her once again, as if worried she would leave her.

‘Riley, what did he do to you that was different than usual?’

‘…he…came into my…my bedroom and …he…he…locked the…the door… he…he said he would k…kill me if I told anyone…what he did…when he…when he…tied me down a…and…he…he…’ Natasha could pin point the instant that her heart fell into the pit of her stomach and she found herself holding the little girl tighter as she cried - not able to finish her sentence or speak anymore.

Natasha held her close, remembering Clint’s earlier comment about pretend play. The assassin easily stood up and readjusted Riley on her hip, who was clinging to her like before, too upset to be bothered about where they were going.

Natasha walked down the corridor and to Riley’s bedroom, before sitting on the bed with Riley on her lap and reaching for a small stuffed bear that Riley had become attached to over the past few days. Quietly murmuring to her in both Russian and English for a while, until she once again calmed down, Natasha gently poked the little girl in the side with her bear and the ghost of a smile appeared on her face for an instant before it was gone again. Natasha held the bear out to the little girl and tilted her chin upwards, looking at her seriously, as tears poured down her cheeks.

‘No talking if you don’t want to, ok? I want you to point to on your bear, where he hurt you. Can you do that for me?’ Riley’s breath hitched as she nodded. Natasha watched Riley lift a shaky hand and point to a very specific place on the bear, which made Natasha inhale sharply, as she realised what Riley was trying to tell her. Trying to figure out how she would make him die when she tracked him down, that would cause the most pain imaginable, Natasha was brought back to reality instantly, when Riley swiped a fist across her face before she began talking between sobs quietly.

‘…he told…told me it was…a game p…people p…played with…with no…clothes on. He t…touched m…me and made m…me t…touch him…and then he said we were…going to play a …more…grownup g…game and he…took his c…clothes off and…got on t…top of…me and…it h…hurt…he said…it was my…my fault…’

‘It wasn’t your fault at all.’ Natasha immediately said, holding Riley closer, who was crying and sniffling into her chest, her fists clenching the back of Natasha’s top, as she whimpered softly. Natasha’s anger had risen back up tenfold by this point and she took a few deep breaths and blinked a few times, to clear her own tears out of her eyes as she tried to come to terms with what Riley had just told her had happened.

‘I’m so proud of you for telling me, Kid. That must have been so hard. He will never ever get to hurt you again, I promise. I give you my word on that. You’re safe and I’m not going anywhere.’ She felt Riley nod into her chest and rub her eyes tiredly, as tears continued to roll down her cheeks.

Natasha glanced at the time, surprised to see that it had barely been twenty minutes and she asked Friday to put on some calming music, to try and calm Riley down, as she continued to cry into her chest. After a few minutes of consoling the child, Natasha heard her cries finally subside and her breaths even out, it was then that Natasha realised that she had cried herself to sleep.

She carefully lifted Riley into bed, pulled the comforter over her and tucked the bear into the crook of her arm, smiling fondly as the girl immediately brought it close to her chest and cuddled up closer to it. Natasha looked at Riley for a few moments, stroking some stray curls off of her face, before she closed the curtain, then narrowed her eyes and left the room to grab her laptop. She immediately came back and sat at the girl’s desk in the corner, putting on the nightlight and the lamp to provide some light, as she set up her laptop.

She hacked into the SHIELD database, not allowing herself to be deterred from her’s and the Avengers previous failed attempts at uncovering anything about Riley’s foster family in the ongoing investigation; and also despite SHIELD having been assigned to the case a few days ago.

Natasha swore to herself then, that she was going to find the bastard that did that to Riley, even if she had to personally go through the whole of the SHIELD database and the internet, and when she got her hands on him, he was going to wish that he had never been born.


	17. Baking, Movies and an emergency team meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha spends some time with Riley. Later on, she finally finds out who Riley's previous foster family was and gathers the Avengers together, to tell them.

The first thing that Riley heard when she woke up was the sound of clicking…more specifically, typing. She tiredly blinked her eyes open and saw Natasha typing quickly on a laptop, sat by her desk.

‘Hey Kid. How are you feeling?’ Natasha finished typing and swivelled around in the desk chair, looking at Riley who shrugged and rubbed her eyes, as she sat up.

‘I’m sorry for…before.’ Riley said, embarrassed at how she had broken down on Natasha, not meeting the assassins eyes - who immediately frowned and moved over to sit on the edge of the bed.

‘You’ve nothing to be sorry for. It was a perfectly natural response to an incident of severe trauma that you had pushed to the back of your mind for a while and I’m thankful that you trusted me enough to tell me. Now, you didn’t answer my question, how are you feeling?’ Riley tilted her head to the side slightly as she pondered how she was feeling. She felt slightly embarrassed still, tired, very emotionally drained, but most of all, - she felt relieved and happy for finally telling somebody.

‘I’m better than I was earlier.’ She decided on, as her gaze flickered slightly under Natasha’s piercingly green eyes as they surveyed her for a moment.

‘Good. This won’t be a quick fix, you’ll have good days and bad days; the most important thing to remember though, is that you can talk to me about whatever you’re feeling and I’ll do my best to help, ok?’ Riley nodded and gave her a small smile.

‘Thank you for…listening and stuff.’ She gave Natasha a small smile, which was instantly returned, along with a nod.

‘Anytime Kid. What would you like to do for the rest of the day?’ Natasha asked, standing up to open the curtains, as she waited for an answer from Riley, who frowned softly.

‘I don’t know.’ She replied honestly. Apart from feeling tired and drained, Riley really didn’t want to be around the other Avengers or do anything too strenuous. She glanced at the clock in her room and saw that she must have only been asleep for an hour or so – it was barely the middle of the afternoon.

Natasha nodded in understanding and walked back over to the bed; she held her hand out to the girl.

‘I’ve got an idea, come on.’

And that is how an hour later, the two of them could be found on the sofa in Natasha’s private movie room at opposite ends, watching Toy Story, as they nibbled on homemade butterfly buns, with flour in their hair. Riley was intently watching the movie, whilst Natasha subtly continued her search through SHIELD's records on her phone - pretending she was playing a game, when Riley asked what she was doing.

Halfway through the movie, Riley moved so she was sitting next to Natasha, who smiled and offered her another bun, which she ate happily. By the end of the second Toy Story movie, they were both curled under a large blanket together, occasionally commenting on the plot line, as it continued to snow lightly outside.

***

That evening, when Natasha had put Riley to bed (she would deny if asked, that she had read her a story and tucked her in – as she was obviously just making sure that the girl was comfortable); she could be found in her office, once again perusing confidential files from SHIELD’s database, when her eyes suddenly narrowed and she smiled at having finally found what she was looking for.

Immediately texting the team to meet her for an emergency team meeting in Conference Room A (despite it being after midnight), she saved the files to her laptop and sent them to Friday, before making her way downstairs.

Stepping out of the elevator and walking down the hallway and into the Conference room, she saw the entire team sitting down and talking; some walked in with glasses of alcohol and others were snacking on what looked to be takeout – which Clint immediately offered her as she sat down next to him and politely declined.

‘So, what brings us all here to this emergency meeting, that apparently couldn’t wait until daylight Nat?’ Glaring at Tony for a second, until he held his hands up in an apologetic gesture, Natasha stood up and addressed the entire room in a neutral but authoritative voice.

‘Thank you all for meeting me at this time, I wouldn’t have called this meeting unless it was needed. As you all know, Riley ran away in the early hours of yesterday morning and had an issue with her powers in the woods. I have already messaged you all with my gratitude for helping me to find her, but I just wanted to say thank you again and thank you to Wanda, for offering to train her soon.’ There were collective nods and smiles around the team, as Natasha gave a rare smile to them all and to Wanda - who grinned. She then continued talking, her face stoic once more.

‘-After I brought the Kid back, she was triggered by something which resulted in her having a mental breakdown over an incident in her past that I did not know about. I have been made aware of Riley suffering abuse at the hands of her foster family – which you all know from the last conversation we had with SHIELD in the ongoing investigation; however, it was a lot worse than we all thought.’ Steve was the first to speak and he frowned.

‘What do you mean Nat? What did she tell you and why didn’t you tell us the moment you found out?’

‘I was busy hacking into SHIELD’s files when I realised the extent of the abuse – wanting to find the culprit and also I was occupied being there for the Kid all day too. I’ll get to what she said in a minute.’ She replied smoothly, ignoring Tony’s sudden outburst.

‘Nat – my team are on the case! God… if Fury finds out you’ve hacked into SHIELD again…’ Natasha put her hand up dismissively.

‘Your team were too slow for my liking and I took matters into my own hands. I needed to get a hold of the confidential files that are authorised for Fury’s use only, so I did. I started with the name of Andy and Mable Jones – the names of Riley’s foster parents and the address for her previous house, then I did some digging and cross referencing before I found something.’ Natasha ignored the comment of ‘not again Tasha,’ from Clint and from Steve, as she turned to speak to the ceiling.

‘Friday - show files IZ-17 and NR-12.’

_‘Of course, Agent Romanoff.’ _

Immediately, the monitor in the middle of the room turned on and projected a large image of a page of writing, alongside an image of a man – who looked to be in his mid fourties.

‘This, is Adrian Langold. He used to work for SHIELD from 2009 to 2012, before retiring and becoming a New York policeman. He recently moved, two months ago into a new property exactly 7 miles away, with his wife and son-.’ By this point, everyone in the room was sitting forward, drinking in what Natasha was saying, whilst Tony opened his phone to read the files himself.

‘I then cross referenced bank statements and housing paperwork, to see that all documents about Riley’s previous house had been removed from SHIELD’s database, however, I managed to find the document of the new property’s contract after hacking into 14 housing companies, that said he had moved from an address in the middle of the city, under the name of Andy Jones.’ Everybody in the room immediately fell silent and Natasha continued, swiping through the documents as she spoke.

‘I then checked of course, for any mention of Riley. I found it interesting that all files on Riley’s history have been deleted from SHIELD, also those of Langold’s family history were removed by an unknown user, who clearly did not require higher clearance from Fury to delete files and so went under the radar. He is respon-‘

‘Son of a bitch hacked into the database and covered his tracks!’ Clint exclaimed, anger on his face, as Natasha nodded. Everyone immediately started talking and asking questions, before Natasha held her hand up for silence.

‘His wife is a con artist – known as Shirley, but previously known as Mable and they have a son: Timothy – who Riley only knew as Tim. This is the foster family, who abused and hid Riley away from the world; they kept her trapped and pretended she didn’t exist. Timothy probably didn’t know – Riley said he was kind to her and never hurt her, however, the parents are a different matter entirely.’ Natasha said as an image of a woman and a young boy no older than 13 appeared on the screen.

‘Riley said the Step-Mother, always assisted in her ‘punishments’, such as suffocation in water, starvation and also physical and verbal abuse. However, it gets worse, as I found out earlier from the Kid that the Step-father was the main abuser…’ She then swiped back through the files to the image of Adrian. She took a deep breath before saying in a low, grim voice, looking around at the team.

‘This, is the man who raped Riley.’

There was a collective gasp and a sudden heavy silence filled the air – weighted by the news that Natasha had given them.

‘WHAT THE FUCK?!’

‘Fucking hell man. That’s actually made me feel sick. Damn - she must have felt so alone.’

‘WHO WOULD DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT?!’

‘That is disgusting. Poor Kid.’

‘I knew there was something else going on! How horrible though. God.’

Steve and Bucky looked mutinous, Wanda had tears rolling down her cheeks, Bruce took deep breaths, as his neck started to change green and with Wanda’s assistance, he left the room to cool down. Rhodey and Sam were sitting clenching their beers so tightly that Natasha wouldn’t be surprised if they shattered, Clint was swearing under his breath in Russian and cracking his knuckles – probably deciding on ways to kill Langold, Natasha figured.

Walking over to the table, Natasha poured herself a shot of vodka – which she instantly downed and then took a calming breath, when inside she could literally feel her anger bubbling as she looked at the image on the screen. After a moment, Tony pressed a button on his watch and nano tech surrounded him. He was the first to speak, his voice a monotone as his face was laced with fury.

‘When do we leave?’ Natasha smirked, but there was no humour in it, just the smirk of the Black Widow – empty and dangerous.

‘Now. Get changed everyone, we’re going to go and give Adrian a little visit.’


	18. Justice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team go and get Riley's foster parents in the dead of night, to have them arrested - will everything go to plan or will Natasha and the teams emotions get in the way of simply restraining them???

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!  
I'm managing to update almost daily at the minute - due to all this free time!  
Please leave comments and suggestions for future chapters - they make my day and I love reading them!
> 
> Thanks for reading<3  
MarvelObsessedgirl3  
xx

‘Romanoff, position.’

‘On the roof Rogers, ready for extraction. Barton, how’s the street looking?’

‘Empty, seeing as though it’s currently 1.34am.’

‘Hilarious. Tony, is your suit in position for extraction? This guy won’t go quietly.’

‘Of course, I’d be disappointed if he did.’

‘Let’s get this done.’

Fury had of course been the first to know – and had agreed to the mission, on the grounds of extraction only, not murder. Bruce and Wanda had volunteered to stay behind to watch Riley, whilst Sam and Rhodey were still in the Conference room, finalising details to members of the Raft (high security prison, run by SHIELD) explaining the situation; the rest of the team however, were currently in different positions – talking on coms, around number 33 Watson Lane, ready to get Adrian Langold.

Steve looked up to the top left balcony, where Clint was perched, bow and arrow in hand and he nodded to him. Natasha then carefully maneuvered down the side of the building and landed soundlessly next to him, as he started to pick open the nearest window. Steve and Tony made their way through the front door – which had been opened by Tony’s nanotech, and was practically inaudible in the silent street.

They didn’t want anyone to know that they were there, as they didn’t want the case to be published in the media, should anyone find out the real reason why they were there in the middle of the night. The mission was simple. Find Langold and extract him, then get Tony to fly him to the Raft immediately, whilst the others waited for the authorities to deal with his wife and son – as quickly as possible.

‘Authorities are on the way – Sam just messaged. We have approximately 10 minutes to neutralise the target, before they get here.’ Steve whispered into the comms, as he and Tony carefully made their way up the stairs to the top floor.

‘I can do it in 3.’ Natasha quipped over the comms, shuffling slightly, implying that her and Clint had entered the master bedroom.

‘Targets in sight.’ She added quietly. Tony nodded at Steve, as they both silently made their way upstairs, to the master bedroom – Tony having gotten Friday to scan the house layout, so they could be quick.

There was a slight bang, before there was complete silence.

Steve and Tony walked into the bedroom, weapons out, to see Natasha with a gun to Adrian’s throat and a hand over his mouth. Steve noticed that a bruise was forming by his eye and he had an arrow in his right leg (he had seemingly had tried to make a run for it). Clint was restraining a middle aged woman with a knife to her throat and a hand clamped over her mouth, stopping her from screaming.

Tony closed the door and took over from Clint – who exited the room to find the son, as Steve took over from Natasha, who stepped forwards, her eyes flashing with pure fury, as she looked between the man and woman.

‘You will not scream, or talk, unless addressed by one of us. If you do cause a scene, things will be…unpleasant for you.’ Adrian and Shirley nodded in fear, as Natasha gave them a dangerous smile, before purposefully exaggerating pulling out a very sharp knife from its holster, whilst making eye contact with the pair of them.

Steve and Tony looked at her with apprehension; they had only ever seen her this angry once before, when they found children being experimented on in a Hydra base a few years back. All of them had had strict instructions from Fury when they first notified him of the situation less than an hour ago, not to kill them, but to bring Adrian to the Raft and let the police deal with Shirley and the son; however in that moment, Natasha looked completely murderous.

‘Adrian Langold and Shirley Langold – previously known as Andy and Mable Jones.’ The couple looked to each other as their eyes widened and Natasha smirked.

‘Yes. We know all about your little fake identities and what you did.’ The woman narrowed her eyes at Natasha, who glared back at her.

‘YOU BITCH! YOU CAN’T PROVE ANYTHING! WE DIDN’T DO ANYTHING!’ Shirley screamed, fighting against Tony’s hold.

In an instant, Natasha was in front of her pressing the knife on her throat, so much so, that Steve and Tony saw droplets of blood start to bubble under it; she also had a gun pointed at Adrian’s left eye socket. She tsked and shook her head disapprovingly, as Adrian yelled and shuffled under Steve’s firm grip in a poor effort to get to his wife, who was struggling under Natasha’s knife.

‘I told you both not to cause a scene. Last warning before you get a bullet in your eye socket and a sliced throat.’ She said in a venomous tone, looking between the couple, as Adrian nodded stiffly and Shirley gulped and nodded, her face bright red. Natasha removed the gun and knife and stepped back, her eyes narrowing, before she turned to Adrian, who then instantly paled under her penetrating gaze.

‘We know everything about you and your family – and what you did to Riley and believe me, you’re never going to see the light of day again.’ Natasha continued as if they were discussing the weather.

‘You don’t know shit.’ Adrian sneered, as the bedroom door opened. Clint walked inside and addressed the couple immediately.

‘Where is your son?’ Shirley’s eyes widened and she replied, ‘at a friend’s house for a…a sleepover.’

‘Ah good. That makes things a lot easier then. Also…’ He punched Adrian in the face, who coughed and groaned.

‘-that’s for Riley, you complete bastard.’ He then went to stand next to Natasha who was caressing her knife, whilst not breaking eye contact with Adrian.

‘Go on then. Kill me.’ He spat at Natasha, struggling against Steve’s grip. Natasha let out a mirthless laugh and shook her head in amusement.

‘No, you see that would be too easy. You deserve to suffer for what you’ve done.’

‘She was a handful and a little freak! We wanted a normal life, not to live in fear of a monster!’ Shirley said angrily, as Tony tightened his grip on her, ignoring her shriek of pain as he twisted her arm painfully behind her back. Natasha took a deep breath to calm herself and to stop herself from immediately shooting the pair of them, before speaking in a dangerous voice.

‘So, you essentially held a child captive, locking her away from the World. You then abused her, physically and verbally for little over a year and took her out of school, before your husband…’ Natasha gestured to Adrian. ‘-decided to rape her and threaten to kill her.’ Shirley looked at the ground, with an emotionless expression on her face, when Adrian laughed and grinned an evil smile that had Natasha’s blood boiling.

‘That freaky bitch deserved what I did to her and I’d do it all over aga…’ Before he had even finished his sentence, Natasha had punched him full on in the face and broken his nose with an audible crack, whilst Clint had kicked his stomach, Steve had shoved him against the wall and Tony had a blaster pointed at his head.

‘You deserve to die for what you did to that child, both of you. And if my friends had their way, then you’d already be dead; but that is too easy.’ Natasha said in a low voice, pressing her blade against Adrian’s throat, so that he also had blood tricking down his neck, as she addressed the couple.

‘-However, instead, you will rot in the Raft – a high security prison, run by SHIELD for the remainder of your pathetic days, where neither of you can never hurt another young girl again.’ She removed the knife and stepped back, checking the time.

‘Time to go.’ Steve and Tony both shoved the couple towards the door, however, Adrian quickly stepped backwards and lunged for Natasha’s throat.

In a spilt second, Natasha pinned him down before he even touched her and took him to the ground with her signature Widow move, whilst punching him again in the face, hard enough that he spat out blood.

‘That’s for Riley, you piece of shit.’ Adrian gasped in pain under her thighs and squirmed to get free. She then twisted slightly and broke his leg, watching emotionlessly as he screamed in pain, before pressing her heel into his neck and whispering in a deadly voice.

‘Pull that stunt again and I won’t hesitate to kill you.’ She put more pressure on his throat and felt Adrian go limp under her heel. He had passed out from lack of oxygen and that thought made Natasha feel slightly better.

‘Tasha.’ Steve said in a disapproving voice as Natasha shrugged, standing up and letting Tony step forward to carry the now unconscious man out of the house.

Clint gave her a shoulder an approving pat and she nodded, as they followed Steve and Tony down the stairs.

A few minutes later, Natasha and Clint were stood watching as Tony flew off into the sky carrying the unconscious body of Adrian Langold – as he had insisted on taking him to the Raft personally. They then watched as Steve spoke to the policemen who had gathered around the front of the house. They then promptly arrested Shirley, who was crying out pleading her innocence, after Steve had explained the situation and informed them about their son and he walked back over to join Natasha and Clint.

They watched the police car drive away and the three of them drove back to the Compound on their respective motorbikes, all feeling slightly happier that they had gotten justice for Riley.

***

After a debriefing in the Conference room with Fury and the rest of the team, Natasha sat in the kitchen, drinking a strong blend of Russian vodka, as she quickly wrote up the mission report with the team. She had been amused to find out that Tony had ‘accidentally had a suit malfunction’ and that he had dropped Adrian over 8ft into the Hudson, before then dropping him again onto the hard tarmac of the Raft and flying off, when the guards immediately arrested him and took him away. She thanked everyone in the room, who immediately dismissed her thank you, as they wanted to get justice for Riley themselves; before they all made their way to their floors to sleep, leaving Natasha in the kitchen finishing her report to close the investigation on Riley.

When the report was completed, Natasha sent it to Fury and made her way upstairs. She quietly walked out of the elevator, and into Riley’s bedroom, pleased to see the little girl was sound asleep, her chest falling rhythmically.

Natasha silently pulled the comforter over Riley, as at some point it had slipped off her slightly and she readjusted the teddy bear in her arms, so that it wasn’t in danger of falling off the bed anymore.

Taking a minute to watch the slumbering child from the doorway, Natasha once again was reminded of how similar they were with the traumas in their past and having to overcome so much at such a young age and she felt a surge of protectiveness wash over her. ‘They won’t ever hurt you again. Sleep well, Riley.’ Natasha whispered into the room, then left silently, keeping the door ajar.

Sighing quietly, as she realised how tired she suddenly was, she then decided to retire to her bedroom for the night, feeling relieved at having gotten justice for Riley.


	19. Illness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley is very ill, however used to taking care of herself, she doesn't tell any of the Avengers and tries to go about the morning as normal.

The first thing that Riley realised when she woke up, was that she couldn’t breathe through her nose and that she was very cold, not just cold…she was actually shivering, despite having her pajamas and blanket on. Sitting up, she immediately squeezed her eyes shut as the room started spinning and she clutched her pounding head.

_‘ACHOO!’_

Spluttering, Riley started coughing harshly, feeling as though she had swallowed a bucketful of nails. She instantly knew that she was sick. Brilliant.

This wasn’t a big deal though - she tried to convince herself, as she sneezed again; usually, her immune system was pretty good and to be honest, she hardly ever got sick, so she had only had to deal with sickness a few times in her life. She had been shoved back into her bedroom in the Orphanage and her foster home with a packet of painkillers until she was better, so she figured that she would be fine as long as she found some.

Blinking slowly, Riley realised that apart from being very ill, she did actually feel better mentally and for the first time in a long time she hadn’t had any nightmares.

‘Friday?’

_‘Good morning Riley, how may I be of assistance? I would like to inform you that your temperature is currently at the highest that I have recorded it, at 100.6 Fahrenheit. Would you like me to contact Agent Romanoff or Mr Stark?’_

‘No, it’s fine. Where is everyone?’

_‘Captain Rogers, Agent Romanoff, Agent Barton, Ms Maximoff and Mr Wilson are all in the communal living room where they appear to be having breakfast. The others are still asleep – apart from Boss, who is in his lab.’_

‘Ok, thanks…._ACHOO_!’ Riley then started sneezing repeatedly, reaching over for a tissue from her bedside table, before groaning slightly.

_‘Riley, I strongly advise you to talk to an adult about your illness, as your symptoms have increased slightly since you have awoken. I also suggest appropriate medicine, a bath an…’_

‘It’s just a cold and I’ll be fine. I can take care of myself.’ Riley mumbled impatiently, as she stood up and shoved a hand over her mouth to prevent herself from throwing up, when a wave of nausea hit her. She had always had to take care of herself and she didn’t see why this would be any different.

‘_My protocols do not require me to contact any of the team, as you are not a member of the Avengers…however, I must stress that you tell an adul…’_

‘I can take care of myself.’ Riley repeated, stifling a cough, as she pulled on a pair of fluffy slippers.

_‘If you insist.’_ Riley nodded in satisfaction when the AI finally fell silent and then she abruptly stopped nodding, when the motion made her head hurt more. She sat for a few moments, clutching her head and she then made her way slowly out of her bedroom and down to the communal kitchen.

***

By the time she had gotten there, everybody was sat in the living room, eating breakfast and talking to each other, whilst a TV sitcom blared in the background – making Riley scrunch her face up in pain, as her head throbbed again.

Waving morning to everyone, she politely declined when Steve offered to make her breakfast and mumbled something about getting a drink; she then made her way out of their view and into the kitchen. The smell of all the different breakfast foods that everyone was eating, made her feel sick again and she decided instead to get some coffee in an effort to wake herself up, as she hadn’t had it in months; then she would go and find some medicine.

Despite only being 11, Riley was familiar with coffee – although she didn’t like the bitter taste much, having had it after many a sleepless night in her foster home, just so she didn’t feel like a zombie when she had to get up early to do her chores. The girl hoped it would wake her up and also hopefully make her feel a bit better too, seeing as though she had a full day of home schooling to do.

Unfortunately for Riley, she hadn’t ever seen a machine as complicated as the one in the kitchen – then she realised that it also made tea, herbal tea and hot chocolate and she fumbled unsuccessfully with the many buttons on it for a good few minutes, before getting annoyed.

‘What the hell?! Stupid machine.’

‘You might want to put water in the machine first.’ Riley whipped around to the voice that sounded from the doorway, once again annoyed that people could sneak up on her so easily. Her eyes fixed on those of Natasha Romanoff, who was looking at her intently, with an eyebrow raised, dressed in baggy jogging bottoms and a tank top, her hair in a long side braid, it looked like she hadn’t slept much.

‘Water in the machine?’ She echoed, as Natasha nodded, pointing to the machine, which was now making a very loud buzzing sound. It took Riley a few seconds to figure out what she meant and then she sighed in annoyance at herself and at how stupid she was. She turned around and filled the machine up with water, pleased when it started to work properly.

Natasha moved around her and started to tidy some plates up, asking if she slept well and if she was ok. Riley replied in simple answers, when questioned and focussed on not passing out as the room started to spin again.

After a moment, Riley reached over to press the coffee button in hopes that it would work this time, however, she then frowned when the machine turned itself off suddenly. She turned around, to see Natasha standing behind her holding the power-cord with an unreadable expression on her face.

‘Hey! I wanted some coffee!’ Riley said indignantly, as Natasha raised an eyebrow.

‘Not to sound like a boring adult or anything – but don’t you think that you’re a bit… young to be drinking coffee?’ Natasha glanced at the girl, who looked back at her incredulously.

Nobody had ever cared what she ate or drank before – why was it such a big deal? Sure, she’d had set meals so far being here, but she thought that was normal…apparently not.

‘No, I’m not too young.’

‘Well, unfortunately for you, that is for me to decide as your temporary guardian and I think that you are.’ Riley huffed in annoyance and crossed her arms.

‘You may have hot chocolate – which also has a bit of caffeine in it, orange juice, water, milk or herbal tea. Coffee, fizzy drinks and soda are off limits, unless I say so.’ Natasha continued to stare at her, and Riley found himself squirming under her gaze.

‘Fine. A hot chocolate then.’ She replied moodily. At a raised eyebrow from Natasha, Riley then added quickly, ‘please.’ Natasha nodded, then she proceeded to turn the machine back on and got out two mugs out of the cupboard, along with a small box that had writing on it that Riley couldn’t read - it seemed to be in Russian.

‘Are you ok?’ Natasha repeated from earlier, as Riley nodded in response and sniffed quietly.

‘You look pale.’ Natasha said looking at the girl intently, as Riley shrugged and started playing with a strand on her dressing gown, avoiding eye contact.

‘Just tired.’ Eyes narrowing slightly, Natasha then nodded and seemed to accept the answer, continuing to make the hot chocolate, before handing Riley a mug, whilst she then made her own drink.

Riley immediately walked into the living room and flopped down into the arm-chair by the large window and stared out of it, watching the sun rise slowly over the trees that bordered the Compound in the distance. She answered questions with one word responses when asked from members of the team and pretended to be busy watching the TV sitcom – which looked to be about a group of friends, it was quite funny, however Riley couldn’t think straight – as the pounding in her head grew worse and she felt sick again.

After a few moments, Natasha came back, put a plate of toast in front of Riley and sat down on the opposite sofa, next to Clint and Sam. She nodded as Riley thanked her for her breakfast and started silently sipping at her own cup of what smelt like very strong herbal tea. Riley sipped the scolding hot chocolate, finding relief as it seared down her throat – distracting her from the pounding in her head and the smell of the toast which was making her feel sick.

Natasha looked over at the girl periodically, but just figuring that she was tired and didn’t want to be very sociable; Riley noticed of course and started slowly eating the toast, hating that it felt like nails were making their way down her throat after every mouthful.

Slowly over the next ten minutes or so, the members of the team who were in the living room, went to go and train or do their own thing and Natasha was about to talk to Riley, when Clint stood up and looked at her expectantly.

‘Training this afternoon, Nat?’

‘Of course. I need to test those new Widow bites on you.’ She replied smoothly, as Clint laughed and shook his head in amusement.

‘Damn, I shouldn’t have asked. See you later, see you in a bit Kid!’ Riley looked up from staring at her half full mug of hot chocolate and gave him a smile and a wave.

‘You alright, Kid? Looking a bit peaky there.’ Clint asked, as Riley nodded and forced herself to finish her toast.

‘Okay, see you both later then.’ When Clint left, Natasha and Riley sat in a comfortable silence, before the assassin addressed her.

‘We’re going to be doing a bit of mathematics today, Riley. If you finish early and your work is to a good standard, then like normal, you may have free time for the afternoon, ok?’ Breathing a sigh of relief, at the possibility of crawling back into bed for the entire afternoon undisturbed, Riley nodded and then stopped as her head started pounding again; how was she supposed to get through 5 hours of reading and writing, when she could barely see straight? She was never allowed to make a big deal of being ill, so she tried to make it sound as unimportant as possible.

‘Um…Natasha?’

‘Yes?’

‘I have a bit of a headache.’

‘Oh ok. How bad are we talking?’ Riley felt utterly sick by this point, but she knew that she could handle it herself, like she always did, so she shrugged and said: ‘it’s not too bad, it just hurts a bit.’ Natasha stood up and nodded, before walking into the kitchen and then coming back out with a glass of water.

‘Sip some water and if it gets any worse, let me know and I’ll give you some medicine, is that alright?’ Groaning internally, Riley wished that she had spoken up about how badly she was actually feeling – but she knew that adults hated children who were ill, so instead she nodded and mumbled a ‘thanks’, then accepted the glass of water that Natasha had brought over to her.

‘I’m going to get a shower. Get dressed and meet me in my office. You’ve got twenty minutes until today’s lesson starts.’

‘Ok.’ Natasha’s green eyes lingered on the child’s face for a spilt second, before she accepted the answer and then made her way upstairs.


	20. Illness part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley unfortunately is a lot sicker than she has ever been before and is unable to keep it from Natasha and Clint.   
Natasha learns that Riley has had to deal with illness herself and she is determined to help the little girl feel better and less alone - even if that means taking care of a very sick child with little to no experience!

If Riley was being honest, when asked about what her worst lesson would be, it would be mathematics.

It had been just over half an hour, of Riley sitting there, listening whilst Natasha spoke about fractions. She was currently demonstrating a calculation with a large diagram of slices of pie that were making Riley’s stomach flip at the thought of more food, whilst her head pounded and throbbed and only seemed to be getting worse.

‘Kid? What’s the answer?’ Natasha asked, repeating the question, as Riley looked at her blankly.

‘I’m not telling you the answer, you need to work it out. Take a few minutes to look at the process that I showed you and try to work it out.’ Natasha gestured to the open workbook in front of Riley, who looked down and sighed in frustration at missing out a simple step in her own workings. She scribbled out another answer, then she put her head in her hands, sighing quietly in relief at the darkness behind her eyelids. She heard Natasha walk over to where she was sitting. Riley opened her eyes slowly and looked at the assassin who was now knelt down in front of her.

‘Is your headache getting worse?’

‘No, I’m fine. Can I just take a break? My head is like mush with all these equations.’ Natasha hummed in response and pointed to the page of scribbled out notes and half right answers.

‘Yes, 5 minutes. Also, you know you can ask me for help if you need it.’ In all fairness, the questions hadn’t been that difficult and Riley knew that she was only getting some of the answers wrong because she couldn’t concentrate because of her headache, not because she didn’t understand.

‘I know, I just need a break. I’m…I’m fine.’ Riley repeated, fighting the sudden urge to be sick, as she stood up and made her way out of the office and into her private bathroom.

The little girl barely made it into the bathroom, before she threw herself in front of the toilet and vomited up her breakfast, until she was dry retching into the bowl, her cheeks bright red as she coughed wetly. She sat back against the bathroom wall, feeling very warm all of a sudden and she grimaced as her head started throbbing again, realising just how ill she was – she never remembered being this ill and she just hoped it wouldn’t get any worse.

‘Just another hour…just another hour...’ She kept repeating to herself, thinking about spending the afternoon in bed, when her maths lesson was finally finished. Shakily standing up, she quickly flushed the toilet and brushed her teeth, before making her way back into Natasha’s office, suddenly feeling sick with the effort of walking.

Riley walked over to Natasha’s desk and picked an apple out of the fruit basket on it - that she was always allowed to get a snack from and she went back to her seat and forced herself to eat it; hoping it would make her feel less sick. She then nodded as Natasha asked if she was ready to start again and slowly sipped the glass of water on her desk, whilst she opened her notebook, ignoring her shaking hands.

It all happened very quickly. One moment, Riley was listening to Natasha start to talk again and felt full from the apple and the water; and the next moment she had hot bile running down her chin, on the front of her clothes and over the floor - pieces of undigested apple and her breakfast toast floating around. Riley blinked in shock, as Natasha had already appeared by her side, looking very concerned. She looked at Riley, whose bottom lip was trembling and she swore under her breath in Russian, as she glanced at the sick child and then at the amount of vomit, which looked to be way too much for such a small child. Natasha pursed her lips and looked at her intently, before she suddenly addressed Friday, whilst helping Riley stand up and leading her to her bedroom.

‘Get Clint up here please and what are Riley’s vitals, Friday?’

‘_Of course Agent Romanoff, he will be there momentarily. Riley woke up feeling very ill this morning and despite encouraging her to tell an adult, as per my protocols, I was not required to contact anybody, as Mr Stark has yet to update my software since the child’s arrival.’ _Natasha’s face was stoic, as the assassin spoke in a no-nonsense voice, whilst carefully taking off Riley’s sick covered jacket, who was shivering.

‘I’ll make sure to tell him to update it. Please continue.’ Natasha quickly pulled the child’s sick coated hair into a loose bun and sat her on the edge of the bath, whilst trying to breathe through her mouth so she wouldn’t smell the putrid smell of vomit that was surrounding Riley, before washing her hands.

_‘Since 8.07am, her temperature has risen considerably and lies currently at 102.8 degrees Fahrenheit and is rising…’ _

‘Just tired and got a headache, hmm?’ Natasha asked, with her eyebrow raised. Riley bit her lip and bowed her head as Natasha looked at her like she had three heads and Clint rushed into the room, staying silent as Friday continued speaking.

_‘-she is showing severe symptoms of flu and her blood pressure is low. I suggest trying to get her fever down and also give her minimal amounts of food and drink to combat the nausea.’_

‘Well…maybe I’m a tiny bit sick, but it’s fine...’ Clint walked over to them both, and he and Natasha both frowned and looked at her incredulously, before Clint spoke up - his fatherly instincts kicking in.

‘Riley, you’ve got the flu and a huge fever! Why didn’t you say anything?’

‘I just need some cough syrup or something and I’ll be better in a few days.’ Riley mumbled, focussing on not being sick again. Clint shook his head in exasperation and pinched the bridge of his nose before continuing speaking, as Natasha started pulling bottles of things and towels, out of the bathroom cupboard.

‘You need a hell of a lot more than cough syrup kiddo. Why didn’t you tell us you weren’t feeling great? I was doing some paperwork, but I’ll run out to the shop and get a few bits for you, we’re out of biscuits anyway. It’s no biggie Nat, I’ll be back in an hour or so.’ Natasha nodded and murmured a ‘thanks’, whilst Riley just grimaced as her head started pounding again.

‘It’s fine. I’ll clean up my mess…I won’t be a bother anymore… I’m sorry. I’m fine, really.’ Something in Natasha’s face softened as she looked over at Riley and seemingly realised something. She muttered something to Clint, which was inaudible as Riley started coughing harshly. Clint then nodded, gave Riley a small smile, took a set of keys out of his pocket and left the room, leaving Natasha alone with the coughing child again. Kneeling in front of Riley, Natasha put a hand on her knee and spoke in a kinder voice than she had earlier.

‘Right, okay. We can talk in a bit. First, you need to have a bath. Put all your clothes in the…’ Riley’s eyes suddenly widened, and Natasha realised instantly what was going to happen, from seeing Clint and Laura’s experiences with the Barton children when they were sick. She all but threw Riley in front of the toilet, as the little girl projectile vomited again, feeling like her head was about to explode. A hand soothingly rubbed her back as she expelled what was left in her stomach.

‘You done?’ Natasha asked softly after a few moments, when Riley had stopped heaving and was just breathing quickly, as she sniffled miserably and looked up at her.

‘I…I think so.’ Nodding, Natasha reached onto the shelf by the sink and handed Riley a small bottle of water, whilst helping her stand up.

‘You need to keep hydrated, take some small sips.’ Riley shakily sipped from it, as Natasha was lost in her thoughts, realising that she was now expected to take care of a very ill child. Releasing a breath that she didn’t know she was holding, Natasha watched as Riley sipped the water, debating on how to go about this with very little experience.

Of course, she had seen Clint and Laura with their own children, when they were ill, however, she had never really been involved in that side of things, as it always seemed very…parental. She was a trained assassin, a spy and a killer – she had absolutely no idea how to take care of a sick kid; however, she kind of had no choice, as everybody else was busy and she was Riley’s temporary guardian.

When she was ill herself, she was only ever ill for a day or so – due to the serum that the Red Room had given her and so she dosed herself up with medicine, soup and basically just hid away in her room; however, Riley was just a little Kid and she probably wouldn’t want to stay cooped up in her room and just live on medicine and soup for a few days, so Natasha racked her brain for things she had seen Clint and Laura do or talk about when their Kids were ill and she gave Riley a small smile.

Riley handed the bottle back and shivered, despite still being practically fully dressed, as Natasha turned on the taps in the bath and looked over at her – concerned that her eyes were now glassy and unfocussed and that her shivering had increased a lot over the past few minutes.

‘Okay, we need to get your temperature down, before anything else. Get undressed please and get into the bath. Pop your clothes in the laundry – I’ll sort them out later.’

‘It’s okay, I’ve…I’ve got it…’ Riley said, as she tried to remain upright. She then felt herself tipping over, as her vision suddenly tunnelled. Natasha’s eyes then widened as the child swayed dangerously to one side. She jumped up quickly and put an arm around her waist to steady her, despite the sicky clothes. Riley whined in protest and pathetically tried to get out of Natasha’s gentle but firm grasp.

‘N…no…I can do it m’self...’ Natasha scoffed and raised an eyebrow at her.

‘Good try, but sorry Kid, I’m going to have to help you out - considering you just almost passed out and have projectile vomited twice in the past five minutes.’ Natasha then sighed at the dejected look on Riley’s face and she then knelt down in front of the shaking girl, before putting a comforting hand on her shoulder.

‘It’s okay to ask for help if you need it. You might have had to deal with illness by yourself before, but you don’t have to anymore. Let me help you.’ She offered her hand out to Riley who looked at the floor. Honestly, she could never remember ever being this ill and she had no idea how to help herself and besides that, she felt completely miserable. Pouting slightly in defeat, she then nodded and took the assassin’s hand, allowing Natasha to help her get undressed and into the bath; however, the instant that Riley got into the bath, she immediately scrambled to get out, shivering immensely.

‘Kid, stop, we have to get that temperature down.’ Natasha said, restraining Riley gently, who was weakly trying to get out of the bath, whimpering softly.

‘It’s…t…too c…cold!’

‘It really isn’t, it just feels like it because you’re too warm.’ Riley opened her mouth to object, when she felt Natasha start to wash her hair for her, however she started coughing harshly instead, her stomach aching with the force of it. She felt Natasha’s hands stop, until she had finished coughing and then the assassin began to rub shampoo into her hair, trying to get all the sick out of it.

‘I feel l…like an invalid…this s…sucks.’ Natasha chuckled and playfully put a blob of shampoo on the pouting child’s nose, as Riley rubbed it off, sniffling miserably. She fought the sudden urge to tell Natasha how much her throat and stomach hurt, how she felt too warm and too cold; the taste of sick in her mouth and the way her head was throbbing. She then shivered from the cold water, as Natasha rinsed her hair for her and reached behind her, before handing Riley a washcloth and soap.

‘Give yourself a quick wash, whilst I go and clean up the office. Will you be ok for a few minutes?’

‘Yes…but I already had a bath…last n…night and I’m t…tired!’ Riley whined, looking between the cloth, soap and the cold bath water as if it had personally offended her and Natasha smirked.

‘I know you did, but you didn’t plan on projectile vomiting everywhere this morning. I know you’re tired, but I’d rather you smell of coconut than vomit, as I’m sure you do too.’ Nodding in defeat, Riley sighed and began washing herself, as Natasha quickly left the bathroom with an armful of cleaning products that were kept under the sink in case of emergencies.

After a few minutes or so, there was a soft knock on the door and Natasha walked back in and closed the door behind her, looking at the sick child – who wasn’t shivering much anymore.

‘You done?’

‘Yes.’

‘Friday – read Riley’s temperature please.’

_‘Temperature currently at 101.6.’ _

‘Good. It’s gone down a bit. Time to get out kiddo.’ Riley went to stand up quickly, reaching for Natasha’s hand to help her step out of the tub, however after a sudden dizzy spell, she had to cling to Natasha’s arm for support.

‘Woah, steady, Kid. Take it slow, ok?’ Riley hummed in response and sighed in relief when she was finally out of the tepid water and Natasha pulled a large comfy towel around her.

‘Can you get dressed by yourself, or would you like some help?’

‘I c…can do it myself.’ Riley said immediately - not wanting to be any more of a bother, coughing harshly again, as Natasha nodded and gently guided her into her own bedroom, before placing a fresh pair of pajamas on her bed for her.

‘I’ll be right outside. Call me if you need me, ok?’ Looking at the pajamas, Riley nodded and started to get dressed, as Natasha left and closed the door behind her.

Pulling on the pajama bottoms, Riley blinked as she felt unwelcome tears prickling the corners of her eyes – she had never felt so useless because of an illness before. She shivered again and put on her pajama top, then started to button it up – however, her fingers wouldn’t work properly and she was getting frustrated at not being able to simply button up a top; the pounding in her head and the stomach ache was starting to make her upset as it was really starting to hurt too. Everything ached and she felt utterly miserable.

‘You ok, Kid?’

‘Um…’ Riley’s eyes welled up with tears, as she shivered again, and had a bad surge of stomach ache that made her double over in pain and whimper. Natasha immediately opened the door and froze at the child, who was half dressed and was on the verge of crying.

‘Oh Kid, it’s alright. Let me help.’ Walking over and making quick work of the buttons, Natasha then towel dried Riley’s hair and felt her heart clench at the sad expression on her face; remembering something she had read on the internet a while ago about comforting children, she reached over the bed and held out the brown bear to Riley, that she had taken a firm liking to and had refused to sleep without it. She smirked knowingly as the child immediately reached for it and hugged it tightly under one arm. Natasha then held a handout for her, which Riley took without question and they both made their way downstairs into the communal kitchen.

‘There’s some calpol knocking around from the last time Clint’s kids were here…hang on.’ Riley frowned at the word ‘calpol’ – she hadn’t heard of that before, maybe it was a new painkiller or something? She watched as Natasha went to rummage around in the kitchen cupboards before coming back with a glass of water and a small box.

‘I can do it myself.’ Riley said immediately, reaching out for the items, as Natasha held them away from her and looked at her with a slightly surprised expression. She figured that distributing medicine was something adults did for children.

‘No that’s okay, I’ll do it.’ Pulling out the plastic syringe and a bottle of clear medicine from the box, Natasha watched as Riley’s eyes widened when she saw that it wasn’t a packet of painkillers like she was used to having when she was ill, and she frowned.

‘What’s that?’

‘Medicine.’ Natasha replied, confused.

‘But…why is it like t…that?’

‘Like what?’ Riley pointed at the syringe and looked at Natasha with a frown.

‘In a tube?’ Blinking in confusion, Natasha stared at the items in her hands and then looked at Riley with a raised eyebrow.

‘Kid, you’re going to have to help me out here. I have no idea what you mean. It’s just how it comes in the box – have you never had medicine before?’

‘Yes, but usually I…j…just get a box of painkillers and get locked…in… in my bedroom until I’m b…better.’ Riley said shrugging, as she coughed again, missing the flash of shock and anger on Natasha’s face.

‘Well, for one thing, that is illegal as you are underage for painkillers that are not properly distributed and two, that isn’t what children are meant to have when they’re ill.’ Natasha inwardly was thankful that she had already dealt with her foster parents.

‘Calpol…’ she gestured to the items in her hand – which Riley was looking at sceptically, ‘is a medicine specifically for children usually between the ages of 6 and 12 and you take it multiple times a day. It’s taken through a syringe and into your mouth, it’s not an injection, Kid, don’t worry.’ Filling the syringe with medicine to the required amount, Natasha went to give Riley the medicine, who was still looking at the syringe hesitantly.

‘Open up, it’ll make you feel better.’ Riley bit her lip, before she pouted and then opened her mouth. Natasha carefully gave her the medicine and Riley pulled a face as she swallowed; she could barely taste it, but the feeling on her throat hurt as she swallowed.

‘Good job.’ Praised Natasha. ‘I’m just going to grab a few bits for you, give me a second.’ Standing up to go into the kitchen, Natasha gave her a smile as Riley nodded and then sank into the sofa and sighed, hugging her bear tightly, running the soft fur through her fingers. Her eyelids felt heavy as she sniffled miserably, listening to the slight rummaging from Natasha in the kitchen cupboards. Maybe if she closed her eyes for a moment, then her headache would stop, she wondered, curling up on the couch.

A few minutes later, Natasha walked back into the living room, holding a bucket and a glass of water. ‘Okay Kid, how about we watch a movie? Riley?’ Natasha walked over to where Riley was curled up in a ball on the sofa and smirked fondly as she saw that the little girl had fallen asleep, clutching her bear; her face looked peaceful and her breathing was even – apart from sounding heavy and wheezing slightly, due to her cough and cold.

Reluctant to move her, Natasha carefully lifted her head up and put a sofa cushion underneath, so she wouldn’t wake up with neck ache or anything. Pulling her phone out, Natasha messaged Clint, cancelling their training that afternoon and thanking him for going out to get some shopping, before she had an idea and walked into the kitchen.

‘Friday?’

_‘Yes Agent Romanoff?’_ The AI replied in a much quieter voice than usual – which Natasha was thankful for.

‘Can you please let the team know that the living room is out of bounds for a few hours, as Riley is very ill and I do not want her to be disturbed.’

_‘Of course.’_

‘Thanks.’

Looking through the fridge and the cupboards, Natasha pulled out a large variety of ingredients and crockery quietly, before peering into the living room to check on Riley, who was still sound asleep. Natasha had decided to make her a fresh bowl of her special mushroom soup – which was always a must for when she was ill herself, so she hoped it would make the little girl feel better when she woke up.


	21. Soup

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley learns that she doesn't need to act tough all the time; that it's okay to allow herself to express her emotions. Natasha and Clint help her to name her teddy bear and Natasha looks after Riley.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!  
This chapter has tons of fluff and angst in it and also if you want to read the full Mock Turtle song from Alice in Wonderland that Natasha sings to Riley it can be found here: https://aliceinwonderland.fandom.com/wiki/Turtle_Soup
> 
> Hope you enjoy!  
Please leave a comment and kudos if you liked this chapter - as always, I'm open to suggestions for future chapters!
> 
> MarvelObsessedgirl3  
xx

Riley blinked her eyes open and was surprised to find that she wasn’t asleep in her bed, but on the sofa, on top of a lot of cushions, and Natasha was sitting silently next to her, typing quietly on her laptop.

‘Hey Kid.’

‘Hi.’ Mumbled Riley, her voice hoarse from coughing – which she had also been doing in her sleep, despite Natasha’s attempts to prop her up slightly with cushions, so she could breathe better. Riley sat up shakily and rubbed her eyes, before starting to cough again. Natasha looked over at her and closed her laptop, before frowning slightly at the sound of her harsh coughing.

‘Friday – what’s Riley’s temperature please?’

_‘The child’s temperature is 101.2. She is due for her next medication dosage in 32 minutes, Agent Romanoff. I suggest room temperature drinks and food, so as not to agitate her throat.’_

‘Thanks Fri, I’ve got that covered already.’ Natasha turned to Riley and gave her a small smile. ‘How are you feeling kiddo?’

‘Hungry.’ Riley replied instantly, just as her stomach rumbled and Natasha smirked, nodding.

‘Thought you might be. Hang on a second.’ Riley watched as Natasha walked into the kitchen and then came back out a minute or so later, with a small bowl full of what looked like soup. Riley reached for a tissue, then blew her nose. She sniffed slightly; managing to smell a tiny bit – her eyes widened at the delicious smell wafting from the bowl that Natasha was holding and from the kitchen.

‘It’s mushroom soup.’ Natasha supplied, at the questioning look on Riley’s face.

‘Did you make this?’

‘Yep. It’s a special secret recipe I perfected a long time ago.’ Wanting to ask further questions but respecting the fact that Natasha didn’t elaborate, Riley simply nodded and sat up properly, frowning when Natasha didn’t hand over the bowl straight away.

‘You don’t feel sick, do you?’ Riley shook her head and coughed, whimpering softly as the action agitated her throat.

‘Okay. Don’t spill it, otherwise Stark would have my head. Here, eat slowly.’ Handing the girl the warm bowl, Natasha gave Riley a spoon and then flicked the television on, glancing periodically at her, as she slowly ate the soup, clearly trying very hard not to spill any. Natasha casually turned her phone on and started texting, when Friday spoke up.

_‘Agent Romanoff, Boss would like to know if the rest of the team are able to venture into the communal areas yet, as he said and I quote: ‘Red, we need dinner because we’re actually starving.’’_

‘Yeah it’s fine, the Kid’s awake.’ Riley looked at Natasha, holding a spoonful of soup in midair.

‘You didn’t let them up here, when I was sleeping? Why didn’t you just wake me up and tell me to go to bed?’ Natasha shrugged, her face completely stoic, as the elevator sounded in the distance, signifying the teams arrival.

‘You looked like you could use the sleep and I didn’t want you to be disturbed.’ Riley smiled slightly, feeling the unusual warmth fluttering sensation in her stomach again, at being cared for. She mumbled a ‘thanks’ and Natasha nodded, as Clint came into the living room.

‘Hey squirt, how are you feeling?’ Riley licked her lips to get rid of any droplets of soup and looked over at Clint, who had sat down next to Natasha, looking at her in sympathy.

‘A tiny bit better, thanks.’

‘Good. Nice to see that you’re still in one piece.’ Natasha punched Clint lightly on the arm, before glaring at him, almost defensively.

‘I’m more than capable of looking after an ill 11 year old for a few hours, Barton.’

‘Sure you are, I’m only kidding.’ Riley laughed slightly and then coughed again, her eyes watering with the strain, which she then squeezed shut as she continued to cough. Immediately, there was a glass of water being handed to her and a gentle hand rubbing her back, as the bowl of soup was removed and placed on the table.

‘Small sips.’ Instructed Natasha, as Riley opened her eyes and tentatively sipped the water.

‘I can do it myself.’ She took the glass from Natasha, who nodded and turned to talk to Clint quietly. After she had finished drinking, Riley sank back onto the sofa with a loud fed up sigh and her bear fell to the floor, along with a cushion; Riley instantly went to pick it back up so she could hold it; however she frowned slightly as she realised something and instead she left it on the floor. Natasha sensed the sudden tense change in the atmosphere and turned back around to look at Riley, who had her arms crossed and was staring at her slippers.

‘Kid? What’s up?’

‘Nothing! I’m fine!’ Natasha and Clint, both frowned at the sudden outburst.

‘What’s happened?’ Natasha said in confusion, trying to work out what had gotten the child so worked up. Clint realised and subtly gestured to the bear that Riley was determinedly avoiding eye contact with, as she continued to stare at her slippers. Clint remembered when his eldest son Cooper, had gone through this faze of being embarrassed at wanting a cuddly toy – however, he had started this, when he was few years older than Riley was; Clint then realised what the problem was.

It wasn’t that Riley didn’t want her bear, rather, she did – she was just scared that wanting it, meant that she wasn’t as tough as she liked to make out. Natasha seemingly had realised this aswell, from the angry tears that had started to well up in the child’s eyes. She was clearly in more pain than she had been letting on.

‘Kid?’

‘I…I’m fine.’ Riley repeated, willing the tears not to fall, as she coughed again and her throat ached with the pain. Her bear laid on the floor and she desperately wanted to pick it up, but her stubbornness to prove herself as tough, stopped her.

‘You don’t sound fine.’ Natasha replied simply, as Riley bit her lip to stop from telling Natasha about how she was really feeling; she had already bothered her enough and she didn’t want to admit that she needed an adults help to help her feel better.

‘It’s okay to ask for help…’ Natasha repeated from earlier, ‘-or to express how you’re feeling. It doesn’t make you weak, neither does wanting a teddy bear.’ She continued, gesturing to the bear on the floor as Riley nodded, not replying. Clint then hummed in thought, stood up and picked the bear off the floor, before examining it and smiling.

‘All kids should have a teddy bear, or something to help comfort them. Nothing wrong with it at all – I actually still have Mr One-eye knocking around somewhere.’ Riley nodded again, biting her lip, as Clint handed her, her bear back.

‘Mr One-eye? You couldn’t have picked a better name?’ Natasha said smirking, as Clint held a hand over his heart in false hurt; Riley simply held onto her bear and looked up at them both.

‘Has yours got a name yet, squirt?’ Gently running her fingers through the bears soft brown fur, Riley shook her head – not familiar with creating names for inanimate things, as she had never had anything to name before.

‘Well, we can’t have that! It definitely needs a name.’ Rubbing his chin in an overly exaggerated gesture, Clint pretended to be thinking very heavily about the names, when Riley spoke up.

‘He. It’s…it’s a he.’ She said softly, straightening the little red bowtie on the front of the bear, as Clint and Natasha shared a knowing smile.

‘Okay, is he tough, kind, naughty or nice?’ Natasha asked, sensing that Riley needed some help to name her bear and she smiled fondly as Riley immediately looked at her and said ‘kind and he likes to eat honey,’ in as serious a voice as an 11 year old could muster.

Nodding, pretending to be in deep contemplation, Natasha then looked at Clint and they both started suggesting names; however, the assassins seemed to be getting more into it than the child.

‘Fluffy?’

‘No, too boring! That’s a dogs name anyway! Mr Bowtie?’

‘Clint, she is not naming a bear Mr fu…flipping Bowtie.’

‘Okay, okay. What about Ironbear?’

‘God no. Buttons?’

‘He doesn’t have any buttons Natasha. Jeez, it’s like you’ve never done this before.’

‘I haven’t!’

‘How about Barney?’

‘I think there’s already a bear called Barney.’

‘No that’s a dinosaur.’

‘Riley, what about…BORRIS?’

‘No I don’t like that, it’s too mature for a kids toy.’

‘-and too grown up!’ Riley chipped in. Natasha and Clint both laughed at this, as Riley looked at them in confusion, not realising that she had said anything funny.

‘How about Frankenstein?!’

‘Clint for gods sake. She’s not naming a teddy bear after a monster.’ Riley giggled and went back to thinking quietly, listening to Clint and Natasha’s suggestions.

‘Riley does your bear have any super-powers?’

‘Um…no.’

‘Okay, what about Sargent Brown…because it’s brown?’

‘I swear to god. It’s a bear, Clint, not a commanding officer!’

‘I haven’t done this for like 6 years, since Nate wanted my help naming his bears! I might add that Mr Blue feet and Miss Bunny are very happy.’ Natasha groaned, as Riley giggled and cuddled her bear close – still thinking of names, when Natasha sat up and looked at Riley with a knowing smile, before saying ‘Cuddles.’ The little girls face lit up and she nodded approvingly, giving her bear an extra large hug.

‘Yes!’

‘Ah, I still think that Ironbear was good.’

‘Shut up Clint.’

‘Yes Ma’am.’ Riley smiled and opened her mouth to thank them both for helping, when she was overtaken by another large coughing fit. Apologising as soon as she was able to speak; Natasha rubbing her back, as Clint handed her the glass of water again.

‘I don’t mean to be a…a bother! I’m sorry.’ Clint looked at Riley in confusion, not understanding why a little girl would be apologising for being ill, whilst Natasha muttered something to him and he then nodded in realisation, got up and walked into the kitchen, where the others were cooking dinner, closing the door behind him. Natasha turned to face Riley again, who was staring at her bear, blinking away the tears that had come back and sniffling miserably.

Growing up like Riley had done, she had never really had anybody who had given her nice things or had taken care of her, as if they actually cared; there had been nobody to tell if she was sick or felt rubbish, or woke up from nightmares. However, as she sat there on the sofa next to Natasha, with her throat and stomach aching, her head still throbbing and her entire body aching, she found herself wanting to tell her – as she might be able to make her feel better and she hated herself for it. She had never needed or deserved a teddy bear or an adult to help her when she was ill or just in general, so why did she think that she was deserving of it now?

‘Ki…Riley, everyone gets ill and you’re very ill. It’s really not a bother, you aren’t a bother; if any of us thought that you were, then you wouldn’t be staying here. You don’t have to be brave all the time, it’s okay to not be okay, nobody is judging you for it. You’ve dealt with so much on your own, but you don’t have to anymore; you’re a Kid, it’s okay to express whatever you’re feeling.’ Reaching over to put a gentle hand on her shoulder, Natasha gave the girl a kind smile, as Riley looked at her; her face crumpled as she burst into tears.

‘I…I don’t f…feel well!’ Natasha instantly lifted Riley onto her lap and rubbed her back soothingly as the child coughed and sobbed into her shoulder, as Cuddles was clutched under her arm.

‘I know. Shhh, it’s okay.’ They sat like that for a few minutes, with Steve and Clint peering in at one point with a concerned expression, only to receive a glare from Natasha, who was murmuring to Riley, as she wept. They both held their hands up in a placating gesture and left the room, closing the door quietly.

‘Can you tell me what hurts, Riley?’ The little girl hiccoughed and rubbed her eyes, as more tears trickled down her cheeks.

‘M…my tummy and…and my h…head.’ She sobbed, sniffling unsuccessfully - as her nose felt like it was completely plugged up once again and she cried harder. Natasha noticed of course and gently used a clean tissue to mop up her face, despite the fact that she was still crying.

‘Fri? Any changes with the Kid’s vitals?’

_‘Riley’s internal temperature has risen slightly up to 101.7, over the past four hours. Her next medication is due now, Agent Romanoff.’ _

‘Crap it’s gone up again. Ask Clint to get the medicine please.’

_‘Agent Barton unfortunately is on a face call at this moment with his family and the rest of the team are eating dinner in the kitchen.’_

‘Shit.’ Natasha swore under her breath, debating her options, her heart clenching as Riley continued to cry. She needed to get Riley upstairs and into bed, however, she also needed to get her medicine and she knew that the girl wouldn’t want to be left alone – by the way she was clinging to her. Also, she didn’t really want to have to carry her into the kitchen to be seen by everyone, when she was so upset, but she didn’t want to bother the team.

‘Can you ask Steve to come here please?’

_‘Of course, Agent Romanoff.’_ Natasha heard Friday talking in the distance, over Riley’s crying and not a minute later, Steve opened the door to the living room and popped his head in, instantly looking at Riley with a pitying expression, before looking at Natasha expectantly.

‘Would you mind getting Riley some calpol? It’s in the medicine cabinet on the far left. Sorry to ask, but as you can see…I’m a bit preoccupied and I need to get her upstairs.’ Steve nodded in understanding before going back into the kitchen. A moment or so later, he came back into the room and passed the box to Natasha, who smiled in appreciation. Steve reached over and picked up the almost empty soup bowl from earlier and headed back into the kitchen, closing the door behind him.

‘Let’s head upstairs and get you into bed.’ Natasha gently tried to pry Riley away from her, but the girl just cried louder and continued to cling to her, her entire body aching with the illness.

‘…Alright then.’ In one fluid movement, Natasha stood up, as Riley continued to cling to her, wrapping her legs around the assassin’s waist subconsciously. She was thankful that Riley was only 11 and so could be carried easily. Natasha awkwardly managed to pocket her phone, which proved difficult with one hand under Riley’s bottom and the other holding the medicine. She then readjusted Riley’s weight slightly and made her way into the elevator and upstairs, quietly shushing the little girl, who sobbed into her shoulder.

Friday didn’t even need telling and the elevator went straight to Natasha’s floor. Walking out and then into Riley’s bedroom, Natasha turned on the night light and sat on the bed, putting the medicine on the nightstand, before turning her full attention to the now hiccoughing girl in her lap, who looked at Natasha miserably, her bottom lip wobbled as tears trickled down her flushed cheeks.

‘Shhhh…you’re alright. Being ill sucks doesn’t it?’ Riley nodded and stopped as the action made her head hurt and she whimpered, her breath hitching slightly. Natasha gave her a sympathetic smile and reached for the medicine. She one handedly managed to get the required amount in the syringe, as her other hand continued to rub Riley’s back comfortingly.

‘Open up, Kid.’ Riley opened her mouth, grimacing again as the liquid was hard to swallow – it was a lot thicker than the soup and she coughed harshly, whining as her throat burned with the strain. Natasha gently placed her in bed and pulled the comforter up to her chin, wiping stray tears from her cheeks.

It was only just after 7pm and Riley had napped earlier, but Natasha knew from the way that she was struggling to keep her eyes open and was continuously yawning, that she would be able to go to bed now and hopefully sleep through the night – as long as she didn’t throw up again.

‘Natasha?’ The assassin was in the middle of pulling the curtains on. She looked over with an eyebrow raised at Riley, who was sniffling quietly, clutching her bear.

‘Hmm?’

‘Can I…can I have a st…story?’ Natasha smirked and nodded – knowing that Riley would be asleep after a few pages; she walked over to the bookcase and pulled out Alice in Wonderland, which they had almost finished, before sitting on the edge of the bed. Reading a chapter or two on a night, before Riley went to bed, had become something of a routine now, where Natasha would stay and read until Riley fell asleep; she even did the voices and used Riley’s toys as props sometimes.

Natasha started reading and inwardly groaned as she came up to the section where the Mock Turtle sang about soup.

_‘…Beautiful Soup! Who cares for fish,  
Game or any other dish?  
Who would not give all else for two  
Pennyworth only of Beautiful Soup?  
Pennyworth only of beautiful Soup?_

_Beau--ootiful Soo--oop!_ _  
Beau--ootiful Soo--oop!  
Soo--oop of the e--e--evening,  
Beautiful, beauti—ful soup.’_

After the impressive rendition of the Turtles song about soup - which Natasha figured was fitting after the events of the day, Riley had fallen asleep, a small smile on her face. Chuckling softly, Natasha closed the book and stroked the child’s hair, before walking out of the bedroom. Natasha pulled the door so it was slightly ajar and texted Clint asking if he was still up for training – which he replied that he was. She looked up at the ceiling.

‘Friday, let me know if she wakes up or anything changes with her vitals please.’

_‘Of course, Agent Romanoff, might I say that you have a lovely singing voice.’_

‘No, you may not.’ Natasha replied instantly, not wanting anyone to find out that she could sing – she would never live it down.

_‘-On the subject of soup, Boss also has asked me to remind you that your special mushroom soup still remains the best ever and he might have had a bowl or two, instead of Steve’s soggy lasagne.’_ Natasha shook her head in exasperation and grinned.

‘Guess I’m making more soup tonight then.’ She walked down the hallway to get changed into her work out gear, humming under her breath: _‘soup of the evening. Beautiful, beautiful soup.’_


	22. Mario Kart and some news!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley and Tony have a bit of a fall out, after he says something insensitive (in a typical Tony style) and later on, Natasha gives her some news about a possible week away!

‘Crap!’

‘Language.’ Smiling sheepishly, Riley looked over at the sofa, seeing that Natasha was watching her with a raised eyebrow, as she played on Mario Kart and had just come in tenth again. It had been just over five days since Riley had been ill with the flu. She had woken up that morning, feeling back to normal and had been allowed to have free time (which she was spending playing on Mario Kart) until her afternoon lessons started up again.

‘Sorry Natasha.’ The assassin nodded and continued typing on her laptop, as Riley turned back around and pressed play for another game. She had barely finished another cup, when Tony and Steve came into the living room, the former immediately asking to play with her, which Riley gladly approved of and handed him a controller, as Steve sat next to Natasha and started talking to her quietly.

‘That banana was a low move Kid.’

‘Ha! Serves you right for making me turn small on the last lap!’ Riley’s eyes then widened as Tony’s character sent a flying bomb her way and she yelled, ‘oi! That was so unfair!’

‘Riley. Inside voice.’ Natasha warned, looking at the girl who huffed and crossed her arms defiantly, pouting.

‘But he-’

‘I don’t care. Inside voice please.’

‘Fine.’ She wasn’t used to being told off for her language or for yelling, as nobody cared before and she was quickly realising that she had to act a specific way now – which meant no cursing or bad manners. Natasha had been giving her lessons in etiquette and for the most part, Riley had been doing quite good with everything, although not being allowed to run inside, was still proving to be a challenge.

All that could be heard for a while, was the sounds of the game and of Tony and Riley growing more and more competitive with each other, whilst Natasha and Steve perused over some documents on Natasha’s laptop, before her phone suddenly started ringing.

‘I need to take this, sorry Steve, I won’t be a minute.’ Natasha then left the living room and Steve looked over at the game on the TV, which was very close – both Tony and Riley were rigid in posture, completely immersed in the game, holding onto their respective controllers very tightly and Steve chuckled.

‘Go on Riley – use your super speed item box!’ Steve said grinning, as Riley gasped and did so.

‘I forgot I had that! Thanks Steve!’ Tony shook his head in annoyance and groaned as Riley passed by him on the game.

‘Wow okay, helping the competition. I see how it is Capsicle.’

‘I’m going to beat you!’ Squealed Riley, as she saw the finish line in the distance, her excitement increasing at the fact that she was about to finish in the top 5 for the first time ever on a game.

‘Not a chance kid.’ Using his item box which ultimately helped him win and made Riley come in ninth, Tony grinned triumphantly and put his controller down, as Riley pouted, actually kind of upset. She had never played on a video game before until he had bought her Mario Kart and she really had wanted to place in the top 5 – she’d spent the better part of an hour trying to get better at it and Tony had just come straight in and beaten her easily.

‘Good try, but not good enough. Wow, I thought all kids had video gaming built into their blood stream, not you though. Have you ever actually played a video game before?!’ Joked Tony who was laughing; he didn’t notice that Riley had gone silent and was now scowling at the floor.

‘Tony, that’s enough.’ Warned Steve quietly, sensing that Riley was getting upset and angry. Natasha walked in with a smile on her face – which instantly was replaced with a frown as Riley threw her controller on the floor and huffed in annoyance, glaring at Tony, who had his hands up in a placating gesture.

‘No, I haven’t actually! You don’t know anything about me!’ Natasha’s eyes flashed and she looked at the little girl sternly.

‘Riley!’

‘What?! It was his stupid fault for being mean!’ Yelled Riley angrily, staring at Tony, who looked over at Steve for help, who shrugged as if saying ‘well it was your fault’.

‘Kid, I was just joking around!’

‘Well it wasn’t funny!’ Riley yelled again, glaring at him, as Natasha pursed her lips and spoke in a no-nonsense voice to the child.

‘Regardless of what he said to you, we do not throw things or yell at people. Pick up the controller and take yourself off to your room to cool down.’ Riley made an indignant noise, looking at Steve for help, who saw that she looked close to tears.

‘Now.’ Natasha demanded. Riley stomped her foot angrily, as Steve opened his mouth to defend her to Natasha.

‘…hang on Nat, Tony actually said somethi-’

‘…why aren’t you telling Tony off for being mean?!’ Natasha’s gaze flickered from Steve to Riley, who looked upset, and then her eyes softened slightly, before she turned to raise an eyebrow at Tony.

‘What did you say to the Kid?’ Tony shrugged, racking his head to remember when he’d said something mean, when Steve spoke up.

‘He wasn’t being mean per say, more insensitive. He was just saying that kids are basically video gaming pros…apart from Riley, who looked as if she’d never played one before…’

‘She was being a sore loser – it was just a joke!’ Tony interrupted trying to defend himself, quieting instantly as Natasha glared at him.

‘Are you that stupid, Stark? Of course she’s never played a video game before – she grew up in an Orphanage. She’s only been playing it for less than an hour and already she’s ninth and I think that’s pretty cool.’ Natasha said, turning to look at Riley who was now smiling slightly at the praise from Natasha. Tony instantly apologised to Riley for being insensitive and she nodded and accepted a side hug from him, as Natasha continued to talk to Riley.

‘-however, when we get annoyed, we do not yell or throw things. Please pick the controller up and apologise to Tony for yelling.’ Riley nodded and did so, whilst Natasha turned back to Tony, looking at him pointedly.

‘You’re making dinner tonight for upsetting the Kid, Stark.’ Tony shook his head and swore under his breath, which resulted in a ‘language’ from both the other two adults and a giggle from Riley.

‘Come here Kid, I want to talk to you about something.’ Riley then sat down next to Natasha on the sofa, as Steve went to train and Tony went to go to his lab for a bit.

‘I was just on the phone to Clint, who as you know, is spending a bit of time with his family on their farm.’ The girl nodded, confused as to where the conversation was heading and she looked at Natasha expectantly, who pursed her lips and looked at her seriously.

‘I am very close to both Clint and his family and usually, I would be taking a week off, round about now, to go and spend it on the farm with them all.’ Riley’s shoulders slumped at the thought of being left alone for week by herself on Natasha’s floor. She’d been alone for longer before though, she figured – when her foster family had gone on holiday for two weeks and left a small note and a weeks worth of microwaveable meals that she had had to ration. She wondered if she would even be allowed to come downstairs and sit with the rest of the team on some afternoons, whilst Natasha was away.

‘So, Clint and his wife, Laura, have asked if you would like to come to the farm for a week, with me – they’ve made up the spare bedroom for you.’ Natasha continued, smiling at the sudden shock on Riley’s face.

‘They want me to come?!’

‘Yes, of course.’

‘But…but what if I said I didn’t want to go?’

‘Then you would stay here and Steve would look after you for the week. He’s already agreed to it, we spoke earlier about it being a possibility in the future. You would not be left on your own.’ Natasha replied simply, as Riley exhaled in relief, wondering how Natasha seemed to know what she was thinking. Riley was thankful when Natasha didn’t pry, but just patiently waited for the her response.

‘I’d love to come!’

‘Good. We leave after dinner. Go upstairs and get packed please, I’ll come and help you and bring some lunch up in a few minutes.’ Riley grinned, then jumped up and ran off to the elevator, whilst Natasha called after her ‘no running inside!’


	23. Quinjet and arrival at the Barton Farm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha and Riley set off for the Barton's farm - but Riley has never flown before, will everything go to plan? Also, how will meeting the rest of the Barton's for the first time go for Riley?

Riley peered nervously at the pilot’s seat, where Natasha was busy imputing the co-ordinates for the Barton Farm. Having never been on an airplane or anything before, Riley was both scared but also kind of excited at the prospect of flying in the Quinjet, however, when Natasha pressed the button that turned the engine on, Riley couldn’t help a small gasp escape her and she looked towards Natasha, biting her lip.

‘You good Kid?’

‘Um…yeah. It just scared me a bit.’ Before leaving, Natasha had sat down with Riley and had informed her about what was going to happen, before, and during the flight on the Quinjet, so that she would be prepared.

‘Remember what I told you?’

‘To…to close my eyes and count to 100 when you say so and eat the piece of candy you got me…’ Natasha nodded.

‘The candy is in the pocket under your seat.’ Riley reached under her seat and took it out, then unwrapped it and popped it into her mouth, as Natasha spoke up again.

‘You can start counting...now.’ Natasha then prepared for take off, looking periodically in the mirror at Riley who now had her eyes squeezed shut.

‘What number are you on?’

’14.’

‘Good, keep counting. We’re going to go onto the runway now.’ Pushing the leaver forward, Natasha began the take-off process and maneuvered the Quinjet onto the runway quickly. She had to get the jet into the air before Friday could take over, so she could go and sit with Riley – whose eyes had flown open and she was visibly shaking.

‘Is it…is it meant to sound like that?!’

‘It’s alright Kid. Just breathe and count.’ Biting her lip, Riley nodded and took a few breaths, watching as the tarmac started speeding past them faster and faster, as the Quinjet picked up speed.

‘What number are you on, Riley?’

‘Um…67.’

‘Good. Keep counting. We’re going up into the air in…3…2…1.’ Natasha pulled back on the throttle and Riley inhaled sharply, squeezing her eyes shut again, as she focused on counting, feeling as the Quinjet launched into the air and steadily rose up in altitude; after a few moments, Natasha called out to her.

‘Number?’

’98…99…100.’

‘Open your eyes, Kid.’ Riley did so and saw that Natasha was walking over to her, with a smirk on her face.

‘Good job. You can take your seatbelt off now. ETA is 1 hour and 34 minutes.’ Unbuckling her belt, the little girl then turned her head to the window and her mouth opened in shock. They were flying so fast, higher than the clouds, with the sunset shining for what seemed like miles. She’d read books about flying and seen pictures, however, this was so different – it was amazing! Of course, she was scared of dying – if the jet malfunctioned or anything, however, she had been told by pretty much all the Avengers before she left, that they had never had any issues and everything should be fine. Riley felt better that she was with Natasha too, as she knew that the assassin wouldn’t let anything bad happen to her.

‘It’s a nice view, isn’t it? Flying, is something that I enjoy. It’s very freeing.’ Riley nodded and turned around, watching as Natasha took a seat opposite her and pulled out a magazine from under her seat. Riley decided that she didn’t want to read the book she’d brought with her and so instead she turned back towards the window and tried to count the clouds and find shapes in them.

They both sat in a comfortable silence, only broken by the odd question from Natasha and the turning of a page, as Riley savoured the view of the sky. She continued to stare in awe at the view – which was darkening slightly, not noticing that after a while, Natasha was stood up by the entrance to the cockpit, watching her with a fond smile. Riley didn’t want to blink, for fear of missing anything and she jumped when Natasha cleared her throat.

‘I’m going to begin the descent now. Please fasten your seatbelt and start chewing on the second piece of candy, it’s under your seat. I’ll let you know when you can count down from 100.’ Riley tore her gaze away from the clouds and the sunset and looked at Natasha, who looked at her expectantly and she nodded; then buckled her seatbelt and started eating the second piece of hard candy that at some point, had been placed where the original one was. Riley wondered if Natasha had snuck it under her seat whilst she was looking outside – she probably didn’t give it to her earlier as she would have eaten it before she was meant to, Riley figured, as she watched the jet start to lower in the air.

After a few moments, Riley suddenly gripped the sides of the seat, as the Quinjet started to shake slightly. She looked in Natasha’s direction worriedly, as the assassin was busy talking to somebody through a headset in a language that Riley didn’t understand.

‘Natasha?’ The assassin turned her head around at the sound of Riley’s scared voice and removed the headset, before realising what the issue was, by the worried expression on Riley’s face.

‘It’s alright, it’s just a bit of turbulence. Nothing to worry about. I’ve just told Clint that we’re almost there. You can count down from 100…now.’ Riley nodded and squeezed her eyes shut, after glimpsing the darkening evening sky one last time.

‘Number?’ Natasha asked after a few moments, as the jet lowered further. Riley’s ears popped slightly.

‘71.’

‘Keep counting and look out the window – you’ll be able to spot the farm now.’ Opening her eyes tentatively, she looked out of the window and sure enough, she could see a very large barn and a farm-house in the distance.

_Maybe Clint’s wife and his children wouldn’t like her…88…89…90…would she be sent back if something happened? What if her powers accidentally got really bad and she destroyed the farm?! Would she be expected to cook – sure she could make toast…94…95…96…and a few other small meals, but she’d never cooked for so many people in one go and what if they didn’t like her…99…100._

A small cough brought her back to reality, as Riley realised that they had stopped moving and that the farm was now very close to the jet. She also realised that Natasha was once again, by her side, two suitcases in hand.

‘You ready to go?’

‘Yeah, sorry just daydreaming.’ Piercingly green eyes looked at Riley for a moment, who squirmed under her gaze, pretending to play with a thread on her jacket. Natasha then nodded and handed her, her small suitcase, however, she didn’t make a move to leave. Looking at Riley with an unreadable expression, Natasha leant back on the wall of the Quinjet and pursed her lips, looking at Riley, who was determinedly staring at her trainers.

‘Is there anything that you want to talk to me about?’ Riley opened her mouth to say no immediately, however, she then frowned and bit her lip, wondering if Natasha would think she was being stupid. She hadn’t thought she was stupid so far right…could she tell her?

‘What if…what if they don’t like me?’ Natasha’s expression morphed into one of sympathy and she knelt down in front of the little girl and tilted Riley’s chin upwards.

‘They’ll like you, when they get to know you. Just be yourself – they’re all excited to meet you, Clint just told me on the headset.’

‘-but what if I accidentally break their house?!’

‘We’ve already talked about this, haven’t we? What are you to do, if you start feeling a little bit overwhelmed?’

‘Find you and we’ll go outside into the field, away from everyone, so I won’t damage anything or hurt anyone and then come back when I’m calmer.’ Riley recited, smiling as Natasha playfully bopped her on the nose.

‘Exactly. Not that I think it will happen at all, but there’s a plan in-case anything does happen. Are you ready to go now?’

‘Yep.’

‘Good, then let’s go, kiddo.’

***

Riley huffed, pulling her suitcase up the lane to the farmhouse. She had refused Natasha’s offer of help, twice, not wanting to be a bother, as the walk up to the farm was only 5 minutes or so from the landing pad, through the field. Riley looked up the lane and she saw Clint standing outside the door to the house, with his arm around a woman with brown hair who was holding a young boy. They were all talking about something. There were also two other children there, a girl and a boy – around her age, who were arguing.

It seemed like none of them had seen them walking up the lane yet, however at that moment, Clint looked up and grinned at Natasha and Riley. He said something to everyone and pointed, whilst Riley turned to Natasha, to ask what the children’s names were (as she’d forgotten), when there was suddenly a loud excited shriek of ‘AUNTIE NAT!’ and the girl suddenly started running down the lane. Natasha put her suitcase down on the cobbled lane and had quickly knelt down with her arms wide open, as the little girl flew into them.

‘Hey Lils.’

‘Hi Auntie Nat! I drew you a picture earlier and it’s a picture of a butterfly! I missed you lots and lots! Mommy said I can have a later bedtime tonight, so we can play barbies later! We can go swimming tomorrow too! Daddy said you were staying for a whole week! Is that true?!’

‘Yep, a whole week.’ Natasha confirmed, smiling as Lila cheered happily, still clinging to her. Clint and his wife had walked down the lane by this point, holding the hands of the little boy. The eldest boy came over too and smiled at Riley who nodded at him politely. She put her suitcase next to Natasha’s and stood awkwardly.

‘Jeez Lila, let Auntie Nat breathe. Sorry Tasha.’ Natasha waved a hand dismissively at Clint as she stood up and put Lila down. Clint turned to Riley, who was stood off to the side, examining her trainers intently, feeling very uncomfortable with this domestic scene and he grinned at her, before he gestured to his three children and his wife.

‘This is everyone, everyone, this is Riley.’ The girl looked up at the mention of her name and she waved awkwardly at the family. Natasha scoffed and walked a few steps over to Riley, smiling. She held out her hand, which she took and the assassin gave it an encouraging squeeze, before she started to introduce her to everyone.

‘That was the worst introduction I’ve ever heard Clint. Anyway, Riley, you know Clint, so…this is Laura.’ Natasha gestured to the brown- haired woman, who was currently restraining the youngest boy who was making grabby hands for Natasha.

‘Hi Riley, it’s lovely to have you here. I’m so happy to meet you.’ Laura shook Riley’s other hand that wasn’t clinging to Natasha and she smiled at her.

‘Thank you for…for having me here.’ Laura winked at her and Riley grinned. Natasha then pointed to the little boy who was in Laura’s arms, still making grabby hands at Natasha.

‘-this is Nate.’ She took the little boy gently from Laura and tickled his sides making him squeal with laughter, before handing him back. ‘-this is Lila.’ She pointed to the girl who was currently holding Clint’s hand; Lila gave Riley a big smile and a wave. Then Natasha turned to the eldest boy who was standing next to his dad and he grinned at her. Natasha smiled back.

‘-and that is Cooper. Oi, Coop come over here and give your favourite Aunt a hug.’

‘You’re my only Aunt!’

‘Potato potáto.’ The boy laughed and then launched himself at Natasha who chuckled and gave him a big hug, as Riley took a few steps backwards – not wanting to get in the way and she ended up standing next to Lila and Clint.

‘Missed you Auntie Nat.’

‘Missed you too Coop.’ The littlest boy ran up and jumped into Natasha’s arms again, giggling as she pressed a kiss to the top of his head, and as the woman gave her a large embrace too. Clint reached over and ruffled Riley’s hair.

‘Come on kiddo, let’s go inside and get you and Nat settled.’ Riley nodded and bit her lip nervously, as the children started talking running back up the lane to the house, leaving Laura following after them in exasperation.

She went to pick up her suitcase where she’d left it on the ground, but she saw that Natasha had just passed it to Clint; and he was already starting to carry it up to the house, running after Nate who was giggling madly – sticking his tongue out at him.

‘I can carry it. It’s not a bother!’ Insisted Riley, as she walked next to Natasha who smiled at her fondly.

‘I know you can and it isn’t a bother. Actually, I was going to take it inside for you anyway, but one of our hosts has offered to carry it instead - as you’ve been branded, their special guest for the week and really there’s no arguing with that.’ Riley couldn’t help smiling and she nodded, before Natasha gave her a smile and led her up to the house, following behind everyone.


	24. Getting to know each other

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley gets to know the Barton's and tackles the first evening on the Farm.

Riley followed Natasha and everyone into the house and immediately her eyes widened as she took everything in. Clint went upstairs to put her suitcase in her room, before he came back down and gave her a quick tour of the house; Laura and the children went into the kitchen to finish tidying up from dinner and her and Natasha were left in the living room.

The house was very large and had a homey feel to it; there were toys in various places, but it looked tidy and Riley’s mouth watered as she smelt an amazing smell of some sort of fruit pie wafting through from the kitchen. Laura could be heard talking to her children, who all then cheered at something. She then peered out from the kitchen and called over to Natasha who had a relaxed expression on her face, that Riley had not seen once since meeting her.

‘A glass of wine Nat?’

‘Ah, yes please Laura – I’ve actually brought you a bottle as a thanks for putting up with us for a week.’ Natasha unzipped her case and pulled out a bottle of red wine, that Laura frowned at.

‘Nat, you didn’t have to! You know we all love having you here and that Riley is more than welcome too.’

‘I know, it’s just a token of thanks. If you don’t want it, then that’s fine - more for me.’ The assassin shrugged, grinning cheekily as Laura chuckled. ‘Nope I didn’t say I didn’t want it! You always bring the good stuff, so you better be sharing.’ Natasha laughed and handed her the bottle.

‘Of course.’ Laura smiled and then turned to Riley who was curiously looking at the bookcase in the corner.

‘Riley, would you like a drink? Non-alcoholic obviously.’

‘Yes please.’

‘What are you in the mood for? The kids are having a glass of soda as a one off and if Natasha allows it, then you can have one too. If not, then we’ve got some squash.’ Riley wasn’t allowed fizzy drinks after dinner, however she wanted to chance her luck – as it wasn’t every day they went away for a week. She looked at Natasha pleadingly who sighed, glancing at the time and then back at the child’s pleading expression.

‘Fine, it’s only as a one off though, you may have one glass of soda if you want to.’

‘Yes! Thanks Natasha. Can I have a soda please?’ Riley asked Laura happily, smiling as Laura nodded and gave her a wink.

‘If you get all hyper then I’m sending you out into the field to run it off.’ Natasha said nonchalantly, gesturing to the sofa as Riley rolled her eyes and huffed, grinning slightly, before she sat down with Natasha on the sofa. Clint then came downstairs and grinned at them, before popping into the kitchen.

‘Careful Lila! Two hands!’

‘I know mom!’ Lila then came out of the kitchen and handed Riley a soda, before flinging herself down on the sofa, next to Natasha who put an arm around her.

‘Thanks.’ Riley said softly, sipping her drink awkwardly, as Laura, Clint and the boys came in with their drinks and took seats around the living room. Laura took a seat next to Natasha and handed her a large glass of red wine, as Clint sat next to her; the boys took a seat on the floor and started playing with a box of Lego.

Lila jumped down from her place next to Natasha and sat with her brothers, picking up some Lego, as the adults started talking to each other, as Cooper looked up at Riley.

‘Do you want to play with us?’ He asked, looking at Riley who immediately shook her head.

‘No thanks.’ Cooper nodded and didn’t ask any questions, however Lila then turned to her with a look of confusion.

‘Why don’t you want to play? You don’t need to worry if you haven’t brought any Lego, I have a mermaid Lego set that you can play with if you want to. We can build a house and…’ Clint then interrupted and gave Lila a smile.

‘Lila honey, that’s really thoughtful of you, but Riley must be tired from the flight – maybe another time, ok? You just play with your brothers.’ Riley sighed in relief and smiled at Clint, who smiled back.

‘So, Riley. How are you finding life at the Compound? Are you settling in ok?’ Riley looked over at Laura and nodded.

‘It’s been quite different to what I’m used to…but it’s been good. Everyone’s really nice.’ Laura gave her a smile and then gestured to Natasha.

‘How about Nat? Has she been nice?’ Riley nodded, as Natasha scoffed and took a sip of her wine.

‘Pft. I’m always nice.’ Clint raised an eyebrow as Laura sniggered.

‘Tell that to my bruised ankle from last week.’

‘Not my fault you put it in the way of the door.’ Natasha replied nonchalantly, shrugging.

‘Said the person who had stolen my last biscuit and anyway – who the hell closes a door that hard?!’

‘You can’t pin the biscuit thing on me, you’ve no evidence.’

‘What about the crumbs?!’

‘Not solid proof.’

‘I literally saw you take it!’

‘Wasn’t me.’ Riley was giggling at this point, whilst Laura looked between Clint and Natasha (who were glaring at each other), in exasperation.

‘Anyway... I made some Berry Pie earlier, as a special treat – kids? Do you fancy a piece of pie for supper?’ Instantly, the children looked up from playing with the Lego at their mother and cheered happily.

‘Riley, would you like a piece too? Nat? Clint?’ All three of them nodded at Laura (the spies finally breaking eye contact at the same time), and Natasha jumped up to give Laura a hand in dishing it out for everybody.

***

A little while later, everyone had eaten and the children’s eyes were drooping tiredly. Nate had already fallen asleep, cuddling Natasha, who was absentmindedly stroking her fingers through his brown locks as she spoke quietly to Laura. Riley was sat next to Cooper, Lila and Clint and they were all watching the TV, occasionally commenting on it – a random nature documentary was on and Riley was quite interested in it, although she hadn’t said much.

‘Right guys, time for bed. Lila, Coop, say goodnight to Riley and Auntie Nat and go and get ready for bed. Me and Daddy will be up in a minute.’ Lila pouted and turned to Laura, who raised an eyebrow at her.

‘Already mommy? You said we could stay up later tonight!’

‘I did and you have done. It’s almost an hour past your normal bedtime. Come on, say good night. You’ll see them in the morning.’

‘Good night.’ Cooper said, smiling as Natasha pulled him in for a hug. ‘Night Coop. Sweet dreams.’

‘Night.’ Riley said, rubbing her own eyes, missing the smirk from Natasha, as she muttered something to Clint and gently passed him Nate – who was fast asleep. Clint took Nate from her and nodded, before he said goodnight to Riley, who gave him a wave. She watched as he walked upstairs to put the youngest Barton to bed and as the two older Barton children stood up and blinked sleepily.

‘Night night, Auntie Nat.’ Lila said, suppressing a yawn.

‘Sleep well Lils.’ Natasha said standing up and giving her a hug. Lila then turned to Riley and smiled sleepily at her. ‘Night Riley.’

‘G’night Lila.’ Riley said and gave her a small smile, as Laura started shepherding the two of them upstairs. Natasha then glanced at the clock.

‘Come on, it’s way past your bedtime too, Kid.’ Riley nodded and stood up, yawning, as Natasha led her all the way up three flights of stairs to the top floor, where her bedroom was and the guest room.

After Riley had gotten changed and had collapsed in her bed, holding Cuddles the bear, Natasha came in and pulled the comforter around her, before asking softly, ‘do you want a story before you go to sleep?’ Riley nodded and Natasha pulled out Alice In Wonderland, before sitting on the edge of the bed and turning to the page that they were on.

When Riley could barely keep her eyes open, Natasha closed the book and turned to Riley to wish her goodnight, like she had always done, before instead, she reached over to give her a hug, like she had done with the Barton kids. Riley stiffened slightly at the sudden unexpected contact, which Natasha recognised instantly and made to move away, when Riley instead then tightened her grip and hugged her back. Natasha smiled, both in relief and also fondly, as Riley relaxed into her embrace; she was thankful that she hadn’t pushed her away.

Natasha stood up and walked over to the door, propping it open slightly, so that light from the hallway shone in and created a sort of night light for the room.

‘Good night Kid. See you in the morning. I’m across the hall if you need me.’

‘Good night, Natasha.’


	25. Horse Race

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Day 1 on the Barton's farm, results in waffles and a morning horse race!

The next morning, Riley woke up at 8am, after a mere three hours sleep – due to waking up in the early hours after a nightmare. She sighed, got up and got dressed, before making her way downstairs, wondering what exactly she was supposed to do on a farm all day.

Peering into the kitchen, she saw that Natasha and Clint were already downstairs; the former was sipping a cup of coffee whilst sitting at the kitchen table, as she scrolled lazily on her phone and the latter was stood by the stove, cooking what smelt like waffles. Both looked up as she walked into the kitchen. She saw that the table was a bit of a mess already, was she the last person to wake up?

‘Morning Kid.’

‘Hey squirt, want some waffles?’ Riley smiled at Natasha and then nodded at Clint, who gave her a captain’s salute and continued making breakfast, humming to himself softly. Natasha however, squinted at her and then raised an eyebrow.

‘You look like you haven’t slept.’ Shrugging, Riley sat down opposite her and pretended to be watching Clint cook.

‘I did sleep. I’m fine.’ Natasha opened her mouth to pry further, however, she seemingly thought better of it and instead stood up and moved over to the fridge, pulling out a carton of fresh orange juice. She poured two glasses of it, before handing one to Riley and one to Clint – who had just put a plate of waffles in front of Riley and going back over to cook the rest of the batter.

‘Dig in kiddo. We’ve got a big day planned.’ Swallowing a mouthful of waffle, Riley looked over at Clint in surprise, before looking at Natasha, who was drinking a second cup of coffee.

‘We have?’

‘Yep.’ Said Natasha, popping the ‘p’. Riley went to ask about what they were going to do, but then there were sounds of laughter that seemed to be coming from outside. Riley looked at the window, but she couldn’t see anything. Clint grinned at Riley and started plating up more waffles for himself, before sitting down next to Natasha and starting to eat.

‘The kids are helping Laura gather the eggs from the chickens, after breakfast. It’s kind of a tradition most mornings.’ Riley nodded and at that moment, the Barton children ran inside with Laura walking behind them, carrying two baskets of eggs. Lila ran over to Natasha and giggled as the assassin started placing kisses on her head, whilst Cooper and Nate went into the living room to watch TV. Laura put the eggs down on the table, spotted Riley and smiled.

‘Good morning Riley, did you sleep well?’

‘Yes, thank you.’

‘That’s good. When you’ve finished eating, wash your face and come back down here, ok?’ Riley nodded and then remembered what she wanted to ask.

‘So, what exactly are we doing today?’ All three adults looked at her and smiled. Clint wiggled his eyebrows at her secretively and gestured to her half eaten plate of waffles.

‘You’ll see soon. Eat up squirt.’

***

A short while later and the Barton’s, Riley and Natasha could be found outside tacking up the horses in the barn. Clint had explained to Riley, that they were all going riding that morning across the fields and that there would be a race between them all, which Riley found amazing, as she had never done anything like this before. Laura was riding with Nate, Clint with Lila, Cooper by himself and Natasha with Riley.

All the adults had told her how to act on the horse – no screaming, no sudden movements etc and most importantly, to have fun! The girl was practically vibrating with excitement and giggled when Natasha somehow managed to tie the reins around Clint’s boots without him noticing; it ended up with him falling over into a pile of hay – which made everyone laugh, even Clint.

When the horses were all tacked up and everybody had their helmets on, the adults helped the children onto the horses and then they got on themselves, behind the children (apart from Cooper who was allowed to ride by himself) and took the reins, before Clint led the way out of the barn. Riley gripped onto Natasha’s arms tightly, realising just how high up they were on the horse and Natasha chuckled, as she watched Riley look at the ground with large eyes and then back up at her.

‘Don’t worry Kid, I’m good at this. There’s only a slight chance that you’ll fall off and an even smaller chance of a serious injury.’ Riley’s eyes widened even further and Natasha laughed properly, before guiding the horse to follow the others, as they ventured out into the field.

‘Well that isn’t making me feel any better!’

‘I’m kidding. You’ll be fine, I'm good at this.’ Natasha scoffed, waving at Lila and Cooper, who were grinning at her from in front. Natasha smirked and then called out to Clint, who was wiggling his eyebrows at her teasingly.

‘$20 you lose Clint?’

‘You’re on Tasha.’

‘Can’t you two go a day without betting on anything?!’ Laura said, shaking her head disapprovingly, as both Clint and Natasha shrugged and smiled.

‘It’s more fun this way.’ Clint said nonchalantly, as Natasha nodded in agreement.

‘Fine, I want in too then.’ Natasha laughed at Laura and grinned playfully.

‘That’s fine, I need a new pair of heels, so the $40 will really help, Laura.’ Natasha said smirking as Laura gave her the finger subtly.

‘We’re going to win!’ Yelled Lila, giggling as Clint nodded and ticked her sides. Cooper blew a raspberry and Laura and Nate stuck their tongues out at the others. Natasha grinned and shook her head playfully, before she nudged Riley slightly.

‘You ready kiddo?’ Riley’s head of brown hair bobbed up and down a few times and Natasha gave Clint a thumbs up, who smiled.

‘Everyone ready to race?’ Clint called from in front, as everyone nodded, waiting for the countdown.

‘Ok, first horse to the boundary by the old barn wins…3…2…’ Natasha’s eyes then narrowed as Clint took off all of a sudden before the count of 1, with Lila shrieking with joy in front. Laura and Cooper made their horses follow and Natasha quickly flicked the reins and their horse started galloping too.

‘Clint cheated!’ Riley exclaimed, clutching Natasha’s arms tighter, as the horse sped up gradually.

‘He did, didn’t he? Well…we can’t have that. Hold on, Kid.’ Riley tightened her grip and shrieked both in fear and also excitement, as Natasha quickly pulled on the reins and their horse suddenly took a sharp right, galloping away from the others and into the woods.

‘Where are we going?!’ Riley asked worriedly, turning her head around to see the other three horses going a different way.

‘Shortcut.’ Natasha replied simply, pulling on the reins as they suddenly sped under branches and through the dense woods. Riley whimpered, at the thought of being impaled by a branch. She kept a firm grip on Natasha’s arms and squeezed her eyes shut, as branches and trees whipped past them.

‘You ok, Riley?’ The little girl nodded against her chest and peeked an eye open. She figured that Natasha clearly knew these woods, as she didn’t seemed fazed by the speed at all and so she realised that they wouldn’t be impaled by branches…probably. Riley then found herself grinning as the wind blew past them and swept her hair back. She felt herself relax a bit, despite the speed that they were going, as she trusted Natasha and she felt as if they were flying.

‘Hang on, got a sharp left coming up.’ Frowning, Riley looked ahead and her eyes widened as there was a small rickety wooden fence that led up a small steep grassy hill that then seemed to even out at the top.

‘Look out!’ She cried, pointing at the fence, as Natasha scoffed and quickly guided the horse over the fence and up the hill, before encouraging it to gallop faster as they reached the top and emerged back onto the field.

‘See, told you I’m good at this.’ Clint rode up the other side of the field, with Laura and Cooper on his tail; he spotted Natasha and Riley’s horse and his mouth dropped open, as all of them, raced for the finish line, which was a little ways in the distance.

‘Natasha! You didn’t follow the rules!’ Urging their horse to go faster, Natasha shook her head and called out to him playfully.

‘I wasn’t the one who went on the count of 2. I’m just evening out the playing field; nobody said anything about not taking shortcuts.’ Natasha replied smoothly, as Laura laughed at Clint’s defeated expression.

‘That’s true!’ Clint looked at her incredulously, as everyone raced for the finish line, Natasha was in front, with Clint close on her heels.

‘Who’s side are you on, Lau?!’

‘I’m Switzerland! We all cheated! Me, Nate and Cooper tried to take a shortcut too, but the horses weren’t having it, so we all fell behind-!’

‘We’re almost there Natasha!’ Riley suddenly exclaimed, as everyone approached the barn, all in a close proximity to each other…

***

Ten minutes later, all the group were riding back to the farm, talking about what they were going to do that afternoon. Riley looked up at Natasha, who was smirking, as she patted a pocket on her leather jacket, where $40 was sitting.


	26. Playtime disaster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley tries to get involved and play with the Barton children, however, her previous experiences and knowledge of a certain game, mean that it ends in disaster.

After the horse-riding competition, the group made their way back through the snowy fields to the house.

‘Kids, you know the rules, make sure you stay out front – where we can see you and play nicely and make sure Riley isn’t left out.’ Clint told his children, who all nodded and then ran off together laughing, gesturing for Riley to follow them. Natasha saw Riley shuffling awkwardly from foot to foot and she walked over to her and put a hand on her shoulder.

‘You’ll be fine. Get to know the Barton kids a bit better and play for a bit with them. If you need me, I’ll be inside making lunch with Clint and Laura, ok?’ Riley glanced over at the Barton children who were now making snow angels on the floor. She looked up at Natasha and nodded; the assassin smiled and went inside to start on lunch with Clint and Laura, leaving the four children outside.

‘Come on Riley! We’re making snow angels!’ Cooper called, smiling as Riley made her way over to them, albeit sceptically.

Her experience with other children, had never been good.

In the Orphanage, whenever she was involved in games and things with children, it always ended up with a mean kid causing a fight or making someone cry and because of this, she had tried to stay away from other children. In school a few years ago, whilst she was in the Orphanage, Riley had gotten into even more fights and had been suspended, because of games with children turning violent and her being blamed for it – as she was always made fun of, for being an Orphan.

Naturally, the little girl was very hesitant about going to play with other children, when all she’d ever known were mean children, who caused fights and blamed her. She watched as the Barton children continued to make snow angels and laugh together; she’d seen this before in the Orphanage – children pretending to be nice, but then when the adults weren’t looking, that’s when they’d attack her and she had nobody to save her. Maybe these kids were different though…they seemed nice enough…but people lied all the time…

Riley’s eyes then narrowed, as she saw Cooper and Lila whispering to each other as she walked over to them. They both stopped as she cleared her throat and looked at them expectantly. She had learnt this before. This was a test. The eldest of the group would assert his or her authority and gauge how much of a threat she was to them - like a hunter to its prey, they would then attack her sooner or later.

Cooper brushed some snow off his trousers and smiled at Riley, who stared at him with an emotionless expression.

‘So…um…we haven’t really had a proper conversation yet. I’m Cooper and I’m the oldest. I’m 12.’ Riley nodded and remained silent, as Cooper continued to talk.

‘-this is Lila, she’s nine and then that’s Nate, he’s 5.’ Riley glanced at the other two children and nodded, trying to gauge what their motives were.

‘Um…Mom and Dad told us a bit about you…but um it’s fine if you don’t want to talk about yourself or anything. We just wondered if…if you wanna play with us?’

‘What did they say?’ Riley said abruptly, not missing the small surprised expression on Coopers face.

‘Just that…that you’ve had a bit of a rubbish time recently and that you’re staying with Auntie Nat at the Compound and that…that you’re a bit different from us because of your…your…’

‘-my powers.’ Riley supplied with a hint of venom in her voice, as Cooper nodded hesitantly and then gestured to his brother and sister.

‘We’re going to play - if you want to join us?’ Riley looked uncertainly at the three of them, debating the likelihood of a game lasting more than five minutes without a fight; besides, she didn’t really know a lot of games to play. She felt more relaxed that she hadn’t been beaten up yet and reconsidered her earlier thoughts of the Barton children, that maybe they were actually nice…

Lila then piped up excitedly.

‘We’re gonna play Tag! Do you want to play with us?’ Relief flooded Riley. Tag was one of the games that she knew how to play through her time at the Orphanage, although she was kind of confused that this would be their first choice of game, as she knew from experience about how rough it could be. Well, looking at the excited faces of the children, she supposed that it was a firm favourite game and so she nodded.

‘Okay cool. You know how to play, right?’ Cooper asked, as Lila and Nate ran off and stuck their tongues out at each other.

‘Yes.’

‘Great, you can be on first, if you want to?’ Cooper said, as Riley shrugged and nodded.

‘Riley’s on first!’ Cooper called so that his siblings could hear and they nodded excitedly. Riley moved away from Cooper and got into a running stance, ready for the game.

‘3…2…1…GO!’ Cooper yelled and all the children ran in opposite directions, trying not to slip because of the snow. Riley debated her options. She knew that playing Tag meant that you hit the person really hard when you catch him, however, she really didn’t want to hurt any of the children; but they were the ones who wanted to play the game, so she decided not to go after Nate, as he was more likely to be injured if she tagged him, as he was the smallest.

Cooper was too quick for her, which left Lila, who shrieked in excitement as the older girl ran after her. Deciding not to punch her, like she was used to doing in this game – having had it done to her many times before, Riley instead decided to just push her a bit, not wanting to hurt her more than she had to. She wished that someone had been that kind to her in this game before, instead she remembered how once she’d got a fist to her face and had a black eye for a week.

‘Ha! Got you!’ Riley said triumphantly, pushing Lila hard, who instantly fell to the ground and scraped her knee. Her eyes welled up with tears as she looked up at Riley fearfully.

‘MOMMY! DADDY! AUNTIE NAT!’ Lila then sobbed, tears pouring down her face, as Cooper ran over to Lila and shoved Riley hard, who made an indignant noise and got ready to fight him. Nate bit his lip and watched the older children from a small distance with tears in his eyes.

‘You just pushed her over! On purpose! I saw you!’ Cooper said angrily, glaring at Riley who scoffed and looked at him incredulously, holding up her fists, ready for a fight.

‘Yeah of course I did! It’s the game moron. You’re the ones who wanted to play it!’ Riley looked at Cooper, who looked at her hands, balled tightly in fists. He looked confused for a minute, before he looked at Lila who was crying and his expression turned back into anger.

‘That’s not how you play! You just pushed her over! That was really mean!’ Riley was confused by this point and she felt guilty at having pushed Lila over, but she knew that she did not want to punch her, so she knew that pushing her over was the only other option. She noticed that Cooper’s fists were no longer clenched and she put hers down too, despite the fact that she was angry.

Suddenly the back door opened and the three adults ran out and down the stairs, their eyes surveying the scene. Lila was sobbing on the floor, clutching her knee that was scraped through her leggings, Nate was standing a little bit away looking very scared and Riley and Cooper were glaring at each other angrily.

‘I’m not the one who wanted to play this stupid game! You all did so don’t blame me!’ Riley yelled and ran away to get away from everyone, as the adults ran over to the children. Laura instantly picked Lila up and carried her into the house, as the little girl cried into her neck. Natasha watched as Riley ran out of sight behind the barn.

‘What the hell happened?!’ Demanded Clint, turning to Cooper who was holding Nates hand.

‘We were playing and…she just…just pushed Lila really hard for no reason!’ Natasha’s eyes narrowed, as she glanced between Cooper, Nate and the barn.

‘There must have been a reason Coop. She wouldn’t do that randomly.’ Clint nodded and looked at his son expectantly.

‘She said that that’s how you play Tag…but it isn’t! She just pushed Lila over and then got really mad at me for us all wanting to play Tag!’ Natasha quickly put the pieces together, realising that this must have been to do with something from Riley’s past and she nodded at Cooper, before muttering to Clint.

‘I’m going to get Riley. I’ll be back in a bit.’ He nodded and gestured for the boys to follow him back inside, as Natasha ran over to the barn to find Riley.

***

‘Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.’ Growled Riley, as she kicked a bale of hay in the barn after every word, so hard that her foot hurt. She had run away from the group, as soon as the adults arrived, as she knew by the look on their face that she would be blamed for everything. She huffed at the unfairness of it all and started kicking the hay harder and harder, feeling her hands start to shake slightly as her emotions begun to unravel. She couldn’t lose control. She wouldn’t. Not here.

Riley had tried not to hurt Lila – she hadn’t wanted to punch her, so pushing her seemed like a better alternative – nobody had ever been that nice to her before when playing Tag, but Cooper’s words echoed in her head, _‘that’s not how you play,’ _and the scared expression on Lila’s face made her stomach hurt. She kicked the hay harder and blinked away angry tears, not noticing that Natasha had slipped through the small gap in the barn door and was watching her with an unreadable expression.

‘What did that bale of hay ever do to you?’ Riley flinched at the voice, but she didn’t answer her, she just continued kicking the compacted hay and felt some of her anger subside slightly. Natasha walked over slowly and sat down on the floor a few feet away from Riley.

‘Do you want to tell me what happened?’

‘No.’ The little girl stopped kicking the hay and looked at Natasha, who raised an eyebrow at her and gestured to the floor beside her.

‘Why not?’

‘Because you already know.’ Natasha hummed in response and watched as Riley sat next to her, albeit a fair distance away and started picking at random twigs and things on the ground, avoiding the assassin’s eyes/

‘Well…I know Cooper’s version of what happened, yes. However, I would like to hear your version.’ Riley looked at her in surprise, expecting a punishment, not a chance to be able to tell her what happened from her own point of view.

‘You don’t believe Cooper?’

‘I never said that.’ Natasha replied swiftly, then her eyes softened. ‘I prefer to have all the pieces before I start putting things together. What happened?’ Riley shrugged and put her arms around her knees – in a defensive position, Natasha noticed, although she stayed silent, watching her intently.

‘I went over to them all, like you said to do.’ Natasha nodded, encouraging Riley to go on. ‘Then they asked me to play Tag with them, so I did.’

‘Okay, so why was Lila so upset and why did Cooper say that you pushed her over on purpose? Is that true?’ Riley nodded. Natasha pursed her lips as Riley stared at her brown boots and blinked away angry tears.

‘Why did you push her?’

‘Because that’s what happens when you get tagged! I didn’t want to hurt any of them – and Nate is too little and Cooper was too fast so I chased Lila and pushed her instead! I didn’t want to hurt them but that’s the game and it’s their fault not mine, because they’re the ones who wanted to play it!’ Natasha was quickly depicting this in her head and she then realised that this was indeed something to do with Riley’s past.

‘Did you learn how to play Tag at school, or at the Orphanage?’

‘The Orphanage, but we played it a lot at school too, until the teachers broke it up.’ Natasha hummed, seemingly considering something.

‘Can you explain the rules of the game to me?’ The little girl looked at her with a confused expression and nodded slowly.

‘You have one person who is the tagger and everyone else runs around. Then the tagger chases you and gets you.’

‘What happens when you get tagged?’

‘Then you’re the next tagger.’ Riley said in confusion and Natasha’s lips quirked for a second, before she nodded.

‘Yes, but I mean, what happens to the person who is ‘tagged’?’

‘I don’t understand.’ Riley said in confusion. Natasha tried to make it simpler for the child.

‘How do you know that you’re tagged?’

‘Because it hurts.’ Riley said simply, missing the ghost of sadness flicker through Natasha’s eyes, before she raised an eyebrow at her.

‘Last time I checked though, playing Tag doesn’t mean pushing people over.’

‘It does!’

‘Who told you that, Kid?’

‘Everyone at the Orphanage and at school knew, because that’s how you play it. When you got tagged, you were punched, pushed over or hurt bad. I was usually blamed for it, even when I didn’t want to play and tried to make them all stop, but they called me an orphan and I got suspended from school once.’ Riley said, her voice quivering by the end.

‘That’s why you pushed Lila, right? Not to be mean, you were just playing Tag?’ Natasha clarified as Riley nodded in agreement, before her lip trembled and she spoke up quietly.

‘I didn’t mean for her to get her knee hurt. I just didn’t want to punch her or Nate and I thought that she’d be ok, whereas Nate is littler than we are.’ Natasha nodded in understanding, reaching over to rub Riley’s shoulder.

‘I understand. You didn’t mean anything by it, you just thought you were playing the same game, like you always had done before. Unfortunately, that isn’t actually what happens in Tag – you were taught differently, due to the circumstances in which you grew up. When you get ‘tagged’, from what I can gather, you get very gently nudged – just enough to know it’s your turn. It isn’t meant to be a violent game, Riley. The Barton children are really lovely and they would never hurt you.’ Riley nodded and then she realised something and her eyes widened.

‘They’re going to hate me now, aren’t they? Will Clint and Laura kick me out?!’ Natasha stood up and offered her a hand, shaking her head firmly.

‘No of course not. They just don’t understand why you did what you did, everything will be fine; but you do need to apologise to the other children. Come on kiddo.' Riley took her hand and nodded, before they both left the barn and walked up to the house.

***

Back in the house, after Natasha had explained to Laura and Clint, then the Barton children about why Riley did what she did, the children all understood and forgave Riley and she realised that Natasha was right, they were nothing like the children she was used to dealing with; they were actually nice. Lila gave Riley a hug, which the older girl awkwardly returned – not being familiar with physical contact in that way and Cooper patted her shoulder, apologising for shoving her too.

An hour or so later, the kids could all be found in the front garden playing Tag, the proper way, and the three adults smiled to each other from the kitchen window, as they saw Riley smiling widely and shrieking with excitement as Cooper and Nate chased after her and Lila.

‘Poor Kid. She’s been through so much in her life already. I’m glad she has you now. You’re doing a good job at taking care of her, Nat.’ Natasha turned to Laura, who was washing the dishes. Clint nodded in agreement and put a hand on her shoulder and she smiled.


	27. Panic Attack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley has a panic attack and almost loses control at the Barton farm!  
Lots of whump and fluff ensues <3

Riley jolted awake from her nightmare, gasping quickly. She sat up and pulled her knees close to her chest - feeling as if her heart was beating a thousand miles a minute. Blinking to get rid of the tears and to adjust her eyes to the dimness of the room, Riley then remembered that she was on the Barton’s farm and not trapped in her old room with her foster father and that Natasha was very much alive and had not died by his hand.

The bedside clock next to her, showed that it was currently 3.27am and Riley sighed. Her nightmares had not been too regular recently, but when she had them, she was always scared to go back to sleep again.

Sniffing slightly and wiping a stray tear from her cheek, she reached over into her open suitcase and pulled out a hoodie, before putting it on, over her pajama top and sliding on a pair of slippers. She saw the light on in the hallway and made a beeline for the door - clutching Cuddles tightly under one arm, refusing to allow the shadows (that were cast by the furniture in the room) or the echoes of memories of her foster father to scare her.

Opening it slightly, she blinked away the tears that kept trying to fall and she cautiously peered out and saw that the door for the room that was opposite hers, a bit farther down the hall – that was Natasha’s room, was closed. Riley remembered what Natasha had told her before she went to sleep and so she decided to go and see her.

Tentatively padding down the hallway, she stood outside Natasha’s room, cringing when the floorboards creaked ever so slightly. She lifted a hand to knock on the door, but then she paused, realising something and she frowned softly, blinking away the tears once more. It was just a bad dream and she had had plenty of them before. She sniffled. She didn’t need to see Natasha – she knew that if anything had happened to her (like in her nightmare), that Clint would have woken her up and she had never actively seeked comfort after a nightmare before, so she felt like she didn’t need to now; she could manage herself.

Looking back at her temporary bedroom she grimaced at the thought of sleeping again. She didn’t want to go back into that unfamiliar bedroom; as nice as the room was; she wanted to get a glass of water and try to keep herself awake, so she wouldn’t have any more nightmares that night. Not sleeping, was usually the better option after a bad nightmare. Sure, she might have a headache and be very tired tomorrow, but for now, it meant no more nightmares and that was good enough for the little girl.

Moving back slightly away from Natasha’s door, Riley gasped in shock as the floorboard suddenly creaked louder under her slippered feet and she held her breath, sighing in relief after a minute, when there were no sounds coming from inside the room.

She then quickly tiptoed down the hallway and then down the stairs (remembering to avoid the third from the bottom which was a bit creaky). Riley entered the kitchen and turned a light on. She needed to get out of the house, just to breathe, she couldn’t risk staying here in-case she lost control of her powers.

Quickly glancing around, Riley saw the keys for the back door hanging up on a shelf in the kitchen and she quickly grabbed them, before fiddling with the key in the latch. She didn’t hear somebody coming down the stairs, as she was too focussed on the room suddenly seeming too small and her heart thundered in her chest, as she started sweating and hyperventilating.

Managing to get the latch off, Riley then flung the door open and ran outside, relishing in the cold night air, as she fell to her knees on the rubble and gasped for breath. The porch light flickered on and Riley’s breath caught on a sob as she struggled to control her breathing and as the stones on the ground started shaking slightly.

She started getting anxious about how her hands were not stopping shaking and that instead of calming down, her breathing seemed to be getting quicker again, as she had tried and failed to stop thinking of her nightmare. The words:_ ‘you will always be alone,’_ echoed in her ears, as images from her nightmare continued to unwelcomingly enter her mind, of her past abuse and of Natasha’s dead body – caused by her foster father. Her hands suddenly started sprouting small blue tendrils and Riley started properly panicking, clenching her hands into fists as she tried to control her breathing.

_She was safe. Natasha had told her what had happened. Her foster parents were locked up. They could never get to her again…he would never get to her again. Her hands shook as tears streamed down her face as the words: ‘you will always be alone,’ echoed in her ears and she remembered seeing Natasha dead in her dream. What happened if the assassin went on a mission and she died? Riley would be left alone and what if her foster parents escaped from the Raft and…_

‘Riley?’

The little girl turned her head slightly in the direction of the porch and saw Natasha running towards her, dressed in sweat pants, a tank top, slippers and a baggy cardigan; the glint of a gun was quickly put away in a side pocket of her pants. Relief flooded her, as she opened her mouth to call out to her that she was ok, but instead a whimper escaped her.

***

Natasha had been sleeping, when she heard a small creak outside her door. As she was trained for in the Red Room – she was a very light sleeper, in case of possible attacks. Reaching for her knife under her pillow, she then hesitated and listened, wondering if she had just heard the noise in her sleep, as there was complete silence now. Deciding to go back to sleep, she then jolted awake as she heard an almost inaudible sniffle and then a louder creak, as if there was a person debating to enter her room or not. She concluded in an instant that this person was Riley, as the Barton children wouldn’t hesitate coming to her if they needed her – and usually they went to their parents anyway. Natasha listened, waiting to see whether Riley would come in or not and she sighed when she made out soft footsteps slowly moving away from her door.

Hearing the child moving quickly in the direction of downstairs, instead of back to her bedroom, Natasha got up and pulled on a cardigan over her tank top and sweatpants and she made her way quietly downstairs.

***

Natasha ran over to her and crouched in front of her, leaving enough space so she didn’t feel overwhelmed, whilst putting her hands up in a placating gesture and quickly assessing the situation. The assassin didn’t see any physical injuries and so she came to the immediate conclusion that the child had had a nightmare and was clearly scared and having a panic attack. Riley choked on a sob, as the ground continued to shake slightly.

‘Hey _malyska,_ I need you to take some deep breaths for me, ok?’ Riley shook her head and clutched at her throat, as she gasped fruitlessly to take a breath. ‘…can’t…h…hurts!’ Natasha gave her a sympathetic smile and took her hands in her own, before looking her directly in the eyes.

‘I know, but if you don’t breathe, then you’re going to pass out. I need you to listen to what I’m saying. Follow my breathing, watch me…’ Riley looked at her frantically, as tears rolled down her face and she saw her mouth moving but she couldn’t hear her over the erratic sound of her heart beating; Natasha seemed to realise this as she started gesturing with her hands too, counting to four over and over, until Riley was able to hear what she was saying.

Natasha then slowly reached over to Riley, (leaving enough time for the girl to move away if she wanted to – which she didn’t) and she put her hands over her clenched fists and rubbed the back of her hands soothingly. The girl exhaled shakily, as she tried to catch her frantic breaths and remember how to breathe normally. The ground shook harder.

‘Easy, Kid.’ Natasha breathed, continuing to exaggerate her own breathing, as she rhythmically rubbed the back of Riley’s hands, as the ground shook beneath them; Natasha didn’t even flinch. She stayed calm and still, urging Riley to copy her breathing.

After what felt like ages, but what was only probably a couple of minutes, Riley wasn’t gasping for air anymore and her hands were no longer sprouting blue tendrils, but she was still finding it hard to breathe, as tears continued to stream down her cheeks. Natasha then spoke softly to her, noticing that the ground was still shaking - albeit less than before.

‘Can you tell me 5 things you can see?’

‘…W…what?’

‘5 things you can see.’ Natasha said more firmly, as Riley’s breath hitched and she looked around, trying to focus on anything else but her nightmare and the echoing voice of her foster father in her ear.

‘…the…gr…ground and…and um… I don’t…I can’t…’ The girl wailed, as her heart pounded loudly, like it was trying to break out of her rib cage.

‘Yes, you can. 4 more things you can see.’

‘…um…y…you.’

‘Three more things, you’re doing really well, Kid.’

‘…the barn and the…the house…um…the trees and my slippers.’

‘Four things you can feel.’ Natasha offered her an encouraging smile and Riley let out a soft whimper, before speaking shakily.

‘The…the wind a bit…my pajamas…the ground and you holding my hands.’

‘Good. Three things you can hear.’ Riley realised that her breathing was much better now and that her thoughts weren’t racing as much anymore, although she was still shaking.

‘Owls…in the trees. Um…the animals in the barn and me talking to…to you.’

‘Two things you can smell.’

‘Your perfume and…the grass.’

‘One thing you can taste?’

‘Blood.’ At that moment, Riley realised two things. One, that the ground had stopped shaking and two, that she had been biting the inside of her cheek hard at some point, and that all she could taste was blood. Natasha sat quietly, allowing Riley to start the conversation when and if she wanted to. She knew by now that forcing the girl to talk didn’t work and if it was about a sensitive topic that she didn’t want to talk about, then it would just make her push her away.

‘I had a nightmare.’ Natasha looked at her intently, as the girl glanced at her, before she averted her gaze and stared at her slippers.

‘Do you want to talk about it?’ Natasha asked gently and Riley sniffled miserably.

‘I…I dreamt of my foster parents and that…_he_…killed you. You died and I was all alone.’ She couldn’t meet the assassin’s eyes as all she could see was her pale blood stained face and the little girl couldn’t help her thoughts from spiralling once more at the sudden thoughts that thundered around her head.

_What if it happened in real life?! What if Natasha was killed on a mission and she was left alone an…_

A cold and partially callused hand touched her cheek and Riley was pulled from her thoughts.

‘Look at me.’ Natasha said gently but firmly, as she brushed her thumb over the child’s cheek. Riley reluctantly looked at her with her teary brown eyes, before Natasha offered her a kind smile.

The assassin had noticed how much Riley looked like herself in that moment and for some reason, a part of her wanted to make everything alright, so she broke the silence, speaking softly.

‘Those people are locked away and are not ever getting out, they will not be able to hurt you again. I’m right here, you see? Nothing to worry about.’ Riley shook her head and whimpered quietly.

‘…but you m…might not a…always be!’ Realisation hit Natasha as she made sense of what the little girl was telling her and she felt her heart clench as tears rolled down Riley’s cheeks.

‘Come here kiddo.’ Riley hesitated for a second, but then nodded – exhaling shakily as Natasha shuffled over to her and wrapped her arms around her. Riley rested her head on the assassin’s shoulder, as Natasha gently carded her fingers through her hair.

‘You know that my job is dangerous and that things might go wrong…’ A sob escaped Riley at this and Natasha quietly shushed her, before continuing.

‘-however, I will always be careful and I will always do my best, to come back home. If anything did happen to me, then you know that you are always welcome here at the Barton’s and that the other Avengers would take care of you, ok? You will not be thrown out or left alone, I promise.’ Riley nodded against her shoulder and Natasha could feel her cardigan dampen with her tears. She instinctively pulled her closer and rocked her back and forth slowly.

After a few moments, Natasha pulled away gently and brushed a few loose curls off the little girl’s face.

‘Come on _malyska_, let’s go back inside.’ Riley nodded, her heart warming slightly at the Russian term of endearment and they both stood up, before making their way back inside.

Natasha led Riley up the stairs, after getting her a glass of water and picking up the discarded teddy bear on the kitchen floor - which Riley had dropped when she ran outside. She then tucked Riley back into bed with her bear, smiling fondly as the child immediately curled up. She got up to leave when a small voice spoke up softly.

‘Natasha?’

‘Hmm?’

‘Can you…I mean…um…would you please stay? Just…just until I fall asleep?’ Natasha found herself nodding, even though it was nearly 4am by this point and even for a super spy, she was exhausted. However, she sat on the edge of the bed, watching as Riley let out a small relieved sigh, before after a couple of minutes, her eyes gradually fluttered closed and her breathing evened out.

Natasha silently walked over to her and pushed a few loose curls off her face, before turning out the light and leaving the door ajar for her.


	28. Unanswered Questions and Goodbyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lila asks Riley questions about her past and the Orphan realises just how lonely she is at the Compound. Then, Riley and Natasha leave the Barton farm to head back to New York.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> Sorry for the late post, I've been really busy with my Uni assignments - but they're all finished and submitted now!
> 
> I hope you like this chapter, I'm debating including an easy Avengers mission on the next one, where somehow Riley gets involved in it accidentally, just to spice things up a bit.
> 
> Any requests or comments, please leave below - I love reading them.
> 
> Thanks!  
MarvelObsessedgirl3  
xx

Over the next couple of days, Riley slowly began to start enjoying herself at the farm and she realised quickly, that Natasha was right and that the Barton children really were lovely. It was weird for her to be able to play nicely with children her own age, but she liked it. Riley especially loved that Lila had a large collection of dolls that she was allowed to play with. Although the Barbies were a bit young for her, Riley fell in love with a collection of dolls that you could dress up into posh Elizabethan and Victorian dresses. Riley’s favourite was a medium sized doll that had a beautiful pink dress on and matching shoes – dubbed by Lila as ‘Mrs Pink Sparkly the third.’ Riley had become firm friends with the Barton’s and on her and Natasha’s last day, she was playing with Lila in her bedroom, surrounded by dolls.

‘Riley?’

‘Yeah?’ Riley looked up from dressing another doll and watched as Lila looked at her uncertainly – she seemed to be thinking hard about something.

‘Can I ask you a question?’ Lila asked, tying the braids on the dolls hair into matching ribbons.

‘Well you just did…but sure.’ The older girl said with a smirk on her face.

At this point, Natasha was walking up to open Lila’s bedroom door, to inform Riley that they were leaving in an hour or so, when she heard a question that made her stop in her tracks.

‘Is Auntie Nat your new mommy?’ Inside the bedroom, Riley blinked as she processed this information and quickly shook her head, before busying herself by redressing the doll she was holding into a new outfit.

‘No Lila. I already have a mom, but I never knew her, she left me in the Orphanage when I was a baby. Natasha is just looking after me for a bit.’

‘Until when?’

‘…um…I’m not sure. I never really asked. Maybe until I’m old enough to go into a halfway house or get control of my powers or something, I don’t know.’

‘Oh…’ There was silence for a few moments, until Natasha decided that was a good time to make her presence known and she opened the door and smiled at the pair.

‘All ok in here?’ Lila looked up and nodded happily, showing Natasha her doll, as Riley did the same, albeit slightly quieter than before.

‘Looking good. You guys should be professional fashion designers.’ Both girls giggled and Natasha smiled fondly, before addressing Riley.

‘Kid, we’re going in an hour ok, so make sure you’ve got all your stuff packed.’ At this, both the girls started whining and protesting, which Natasha found very sweet and quite annoying at the same time.

‘No Natasha!’

‘Auntie Nattttt!’

‘Yes Riley and also Lilaaaaa.’ Natasha replied in the same pleading voice that Lila had used, which made the little girl giggle and go back to playing with her doll. Riley pouted and looked at Natasha, who raised an eyebrow at her puppy dog expression.

‘Can’t we stay a bit longer Natasha? I want to keep playing with Lila! I’m sort of packed already.’

‘Sorry kiddo, but our week is up and there’s only so long that I can be on call for, besides, the Barton kids have school and you’ve got a ton of translations to catch up on.’ Riley had an idea and looked at Natasha with a longing expression.

‘Why can’t you go back and I stay here?!’

‘Not an option Kid. You can play for a bit, but you need to be ready to go in an hour, ok?’

‘No, not ok! Why can’t I stay?!’ Natasha sighed.

‘Kid, you can’t stay here – you’re coming back to the Compound. We will be back here for Christmas, it’s only six weeks away.’ Lila perked up at this and Natasha winked at her, before Riley spoke up again pleadingly.

‘But that’s ages away! It’s not fair!’

‘Riley, enough.’ Natasha said warningly in a no-nonsense tone.

‘Fine.’ Riley sighed dejectedly and went back to playing with her doll. She was just annoyed that she had finally made some friends and that now she was not able to see them probably for ages. She wanted a normal life, where she could go to school and have friends…it wasn’t fair.

‘One hour.’ Both girls nodded and Natasha left the room, going to pack the last of her own things.

‘Don’t worry Riley, six weeks will go by super fast!’ Riley shook her head and picked out a new pair of shoes for her doll.

‘It will for you guys. Me? I’ll be stuck in Natasha’s office, monitored by one of the Avengers whilst learning different languages and doing stupid fractions in math.’ Lila frowned at this.

‘What about your friends though?’

‘What?’

‘You don’t go to proper school?’

‘No, your dad told you that I don’t.’

‘No he didn’t…he said that you were being looked after by the Avengers and living in the Compound, he didn’t mention school.’

‘Well, because of my powers, I can’t go to a proper school, so I’m being homeschooled. It’s fine…just…I’d like to be able to go to school, not for the work, but so I can make friends.’

‘Can’t you make some friends in a club?’

‘A club?’

‘Yeah! Me and Coop go to Scouts on Thursdays and then on Tuesday I do Ballet and Gymnastics, and Coop does football with Nate on Saturday – but they’re in different classes because of their ages.’ Lila explained, as Riley listened interestedly.

‘Hmm…maybe I’ll ask Natasha…thanks Lila!’

‘No problem! Let’s play now!’

‘Yeah.’

***

An hour later and Natasha poked her head round the door, choosing to ignore the whines and pleading expressions from the two girls.

‘Time to go Kid.’

Riley and Lila both stood up in defeat and followed Natasha down the stairs. Riley was surprised to see that her suitcase was already packed and by the front door – she looked at Natasha sheepishly, who waved dismissively and smirked.

‘It’s been lovely having you here Riley. We can’t wait to see you for Christmas.’ Laura tentatively reached over to hug Riley, who flinched at the contact and then returned the hug.

‘Thanks for having me Mrs Barton, I had a great time and I can’t wait to come back.’

‘Please, call me Laura.’

‘Okay, thanks Laura.’ Riley smiled and then frowned as she saw that Clint wasn’t leaving.

‘Aren’t you coming with us?’ Clint smiled and shook his head, putting his arm around Laura and his other passed Riley her suitcase.

‘Nope. I’m allowed to be on call for a while – Fury realised just how many holiday days I was entitled and I’m staying here until New Years.’ Riley bit her lip and nodded. She was saddened hearing this, as Clint was always really nice to her and was good to mess around with in the Compound, but she was happy that the children were so happy and were cheering at this news. Clint winked at her and she smiled, before giggling as he reached over and ruffled her hair.

‘See you in a couple weeks squirt, try and be good and don’t give Nat any more grey hairs.’

‘Oi, watch it birdbrain.’ Natasha said, raising an eyebrow at Clint who grinned at her, whilst Riley smiled and nodded, then went to say goodbye to the Barton children. She was surprised when they all gave her hugs and she found herself smiling at them, with an unfamiliar warmth in her stomach.

‘Come on then kiddo.’ Riley turned around to see Natasha handing her, her jacket and she put it on, then picked up her suitcase, watching as Natasha said goodbye to the Barton’s. After everybody had said their goodbyes and Natasha had been handed a small pile of pictures from Lila, which immediately went into her suitcase; together, Riley and Natasha then made their way out of the front door, down the cobbled path and back through the field, to the Quinjet.

‘Did you have fun?’

‘Yep, it was pretty cool – did you say that we’re coming back for Christmas?’

‘Yes, we have a week here at Christmas too. Is that alright?’ Riley smiled at Natasha and nodded, following the assassin through the snowy field.

‘100% alright.’

‘Good to hear. Come on Kiddo, race you to the Jet.’ Natasha then instantly took off running towards the distant Jet; Riley made an indignant noise and clumsily ran behind her, dragging her suitcase, grinning as she ran.


	29. The Black Widow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a bad mission and an unexpected encounter with someone from her past, Natasha takes refuge in the firing range; unfortunately, a certain little girl wants to see her.

Riley loved living at the Compound. There were what seemed like thousands of rooms, loads of windows and very expensive looking furnishings. The floor was always clean – unlike it had been in the Orphanage, where there was always some sort of sticky food that a child had dropped at some point that day. She was quickly making friends with the other Avengers and loved that at least one of them was around, when the others were not busy with missions or other things. Riley hadn’t mentioned the talk that she had had with Lila to Natasha, about going to school and joining clubs, however, when allowed to go onto Sam’s laptop on an evening – she had secretly been looking at nearby clubs; she was upset to find that there wasn’t any, as the Compound was in quite a secluded area, due to security reasons.

She had been progressing steadily in her lessons with Natasha, however, after the interactions that she had had with the Bartons, she found herself sometimes looking outside into the snowy garden of the Compound and wishing that she could play with other children her own age.

One afternoon, three days when they had arrived back to the Compound, Riley was sat at the communal kitchen counter, writing a short story for her English lesson, with Cuddles the bear sat next to her. She was being monitored by Wanda, as Natasha had gone away on a mission with Steve, practically as soon as they came back from the farm and they still hadn’t come back yet. Wanda had been making Riley’s essay float into the air, until Friday had told her that there was an incoming face call from Vision, who was on a mission in Nepal with Tony. The teenager had run off to her bedroom, when Riley had assured her that she would be okay for a while. However, after a while Riley decided that it would be the perfect time to have a break and also to do some exploring in the areas of the Compound that she hadn’t explored yet.

Grabbing her bear, she walked tentatively down the hallway and then down another and another, until she was in a new section of the Compound that she hadn’t been to yet. She decided to open one of the many doors, to have a look around. She pushed the door open and was interested to find herself in a very large library, not like the one on Natasha’s floor, this one, was full of old books and papers that went as high as the ceiling. She walked inside, her nose wrinkling due to the old book smell. She wondered why she hadn’t been shown this library and she then perked up as she saw a large comfy sofa seat, that overlooked the other side of the gardens – it looked very cosy and she then frowned as she saw a figure in the opposite corner. Bucky Barnes. He was holding a pile of old papers and had an unreadable expression on his face.

Riley had of course been introduced to everyone at the Compound when she first arrived and mostly she talked to all the Avengers. However, Bucky had been on a mission for the past month and so she hadn’t really seen him, since her first few weeks at the Compound – where she had mostly been on Natasha’s floor and had just seen him in passing. To be honest, she had found him kind of scary and she gulped upon seeing him silently observing her. Subconsciously, she tightened her grip on Cuddles’ arm, as he hung limply from her grasp.

‘Um…hi?’ She ventured nervously. Bucky put down the pile of papers on a nearby table and crossed his arms, before replying.

‘What are you doing in here?’ Riley blinked and then shrugged before saying simply, ‘we’re exploring.’

‘We?’ Bucky questioned in a stoic voice, so similar to Natasha’s that Riley bit her lip anxiously, wondering if she was in trouble. She nodded and glanced down to her bear, before realising that the man was smirking fondly at her and he started walking over to her. She took a step back towards the door, her heart beating fast in her chest, at the sight of a fresh cut on his neck and the glint of metal from his metal arm, under his top.

Bucky walked right up to her and then raised an eyebrow at her. ‘Hate to break it to ya Kid, but you aren’t meant to be in here. This is the private library, Avengers only.’ Riley nodded quickly and froze, as he reached his hand over to her. She squeezed her eyes shut and then frowned in confusion as she just felt her hair being ruffled. She opened her eyes and saw Bucky looking down at her with an almost understanding expression, but quickly it was gone and he just gave her a small smile.

‘Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone that you were here. Have fun exploring. Oh and be careful, I’ve heard that there’s a lion who prowls these halls sometimes and he goes by the name of Banner. Don’t think he’ll be a match for your friend though.’ Bucky gestured to her bear, as Riley giggled and nodded.

‘Thanks Mr Barnes.’

‘Bucky.’

‘Thanks, Bucky.’

‘No worries Kid.’ He gave her a wink and turned back to his papers, whilst Riley made her way out of the library and back into the hallway. She walked further down the hallway and through a few empty rooms, until she realised that she was lost.

‘Cuddles…I think we’re a bit lost.’ Biting her lip she tried to trace her steps, but due to all the hallways and doors and different rooms, it proved impossible for the little girl. She then remembered that Mr Stark’s AI was everywhere in the Compound apparently and she decided to try and talk to it, in-case she was lost forever in the hallways of the Compound.

‘Friday?’

_‘Yes Miss Ford?’_

‘It’s just Riley.’

_‘Of course, Riley. How may I be of assistance?’_

‘Um…where am I? I went exploring…but I’m kind of lost.’

_‘You are currently on the second floor and are between rooms 39A and 41B.’_

‘Am I allowed to be down here? Mr Barn…Bucky said I wasn’t allowed in the library, but why didn’t you say anything?’

_‘My protocol states that as long as you are not in any immediate danger, then you may go wherever you like in the Compound that does not activate ‘Babysitter protocol.’ – this protocol will activate if you enter one of these areas alone or unauthorised. It includes but is not limited to: The Gym, the training rooms, the firing range, the Main Library, the garage, the labs and the weapons rooms. The Main Library is part of the protocol, however as Mr Barnes was inside, the protocol was not activated.’_

‘So, where’s everyone now?’ She looked around the hallway and listened to the AI’s reply.

_‘Boss, Agent Barton and Vision are not on the premises. Mr Wilson is training in the gym with Captain Rogers, Mr Barnes is in the main Library and Ms Maximoff is in her personal quarters. Agent Romanoff is currently in the firing range.’_ Riley almost choked on the jellybeans hearing this and she swallowed quickly before exclaiming: ‘Steve and Natasha are back?!’

_‘Yes. They arrived approximately two hours ago.’ _Riley frowned at this, why didn’t Natasha come and see her? Maybe, she could go and see her instead?

‘Where’s the firing range, Friday?’

_‘You are not permitted to enter the firing range alone or unauthorised, Riley.’_

‘I know, but I won’t be alone, because Natasha’s there!’ The AI was silent for a few moments and Riley opened her mouth to try and plead her case again, as technically she wasn’t breaking any rules, when Friday spoke up. _‘The firing range is down the hall, through the first door and then turn right.’_

‘Cool, thanks Friday!’

_‘Of course, Riley.’ _The little girl then followed the AI’s instructions and found herself a few minutes later, opening a silver steel door, to a very large room, that smelt a bit of fire and was slightly smoky, despite the quiet whirr of the air filtration system.

She quietly made her way into the room, clutching her bear. The door closed silently behind her and she saw at the other end, that Natasha had her back to her and had ear-muffs on, shooting bullet after bullet into what appeared to be moving targets. The young girl frowned as she saw that the assassin still had her Widow outfit on and she bit her lip, as Natasha continued to smoothly shoot bullet after bullet, alternating between her hands. After a few seconds, Riley realised that she found it oddly soothing, despite the fact that it was very loud, as each bullet into the target sounded rhythmic and she was awed by Natasha’s skill with a gun.

Riley walked a bit further into the room and watched Natasha for a few more seconds, until she glanced out of the window near her. Riley turned back around and she noticed a moment too late that the sound of gun fire had suddenly stopped. She watched as, as quick as lightening, Natasha had stilled and then jumped backwards without warning. Natasha had suddenly pinned her to the window, with a knife pressed to her throat and was glaring at her, with a deadly look in her eyes that had Riley’s bottom lip wobbling, as she had never seen it before.

The ear-muffs had been disregarded mid jump a few feet away and the crazy glint in the assassin’s eyes had instantly faded away, as she realised who the intruder was and it was replaced instead, with an unusual emptiness – that had Riley cowering before her. Natasha quickly put the knife back in its holster in her uniform and she took a deep breath to calm herself, before she spoke in firm voice to Riley, who was shaking at having had her temporary guardian hold a knife to her throat, a minute before.

‘What the hell are you doing in here? I could have killed you.’

‘Um…um…’ Riley stuttered, unable to stop herself shaking, as Natasha took another deep breath. Something softened slightly in Natasha’s expression as her eyes then glanced between the bear and the little girl’s scared expression, before her eyes narrowed again and she put a vice like grip on Riley’s shoulders, steering her out of the room and back into the long hallway. She then addressed the ceiling in the hallway.

‘Friday? Why was the Babysitter protocol not activated, when she tried to get into the room and why the hell has she been left on her own anyway? I thought Wanda was watching her?’

_‘Unfortunately, it appears that Riley found what is known as a ‘loophole’. She was not alone in the room, therefore my protocol was not activated. My apologies, Agent Romanoff. Also, Ms Maximoff was watching her, however, she left to attend to a video call from Vision 26 minutes ago.’_

‘Update that now and also all the other restricted areas in that protocol immediately, override code AgentRomanoff84. Also, update Parker’s protocols to this too, just in case he decides to venture down here. Let Wanda know that I need to talk to her later, but for now I do not wish to be disturbed by anybody.’

_‘Of course, Agent Romanoff. Update complete.’_ Riley didn’t ask who Parker was, as she was staring determinedly at the ground, unable to meet Natasha’s eyes. She knew she was in big trouble now and she was kind of scared of the woman in front of her too, as she sounded different than normal…less like Natasha and more like the woman that she had seen on TV when she was younger… ‘The Black Widow.’

‘Kid. Look at me.’ There was still a firmness to Natasha's voice, that had Riley looking up at her with big watery eyes, which were instantly drawn to a large cut on the assassin’s forehead.

‘What were you doing down here anyway?’

‘…we were…we were exploring…and…and I wanted to see…you…’ Riley replied shakily, blinking as her eyes filled with tears and she tightened her grip on her bear. Natasha pursed her lips, before she then pointed to a large sign above the door to the room, which was currently red and then she gestured to a small button on the wall by the door, that Riley hadn’t noticed before.

‘If I’m down here and you need me for whatever reason, you do not enter the room. If you need to get my attention, you press this button three times, which will signal me inside the room. Do you understand?’ Riley swiped a hand over her eyes and mumbled a small ‘yes.’ Natasha nodded.

‘I’m sorry for pulling a knife out on you, I thought you were an intruder.’ She said bluntly and Riley nodded, as Natasha looked at her, giving her a once over.

‘Are you ok?’

‘Yes…I’m sorry.’ Natasha nodded again and Riley frowned, as she noticed for the first time since leaving the room, that Natasha’s eyes still seemed empty…it was quite unnerving.

‘I know you are. Come on, I’ll take you back up to the main floor, so you don’t get into any more trouble.’ Natasha said with an attempt at a laugh, that came out quite strained. She gestured for Riley to walk with her, when the little girl looked at her, as seriously as an 11 year old could.

‘You…um…you know you’re…you’re bleeding…right?’ Riley pointed out, hesitantly gesturing to Natasha’s forehead, when the assassin raised an eyebrow questioningly. She reached up and touched her forehead, slightly amused to see that her fingers came away bloodied.

‘Hmm…looks like I am, doesn’t it?’ She started walking and Riley had to run to catch up with her.

‘Natasha?’

‘Yes?’

‘Are you…are you ok?’

‘I am fine. Why would I not be?’ Natasha said bluntly and opened another door that they both walked through. Riley could see the door that led to the library a little ways down.

‘I…um…you just…you’re acting a bit weird.’

‘I am fine.’ Natasha repeated emotionlessly. They walked in an uncomfortable silence for a few minutes, until Riley realised where they were, and she could see the entrance to the communal kitchen. Natasha suddenly stopped and looked at Riley who shrunk back slightly at the empty look in her eyes again; noticing this, Natasha quickly gave her a smile in an attempt at making her less nervous, however Riley just averted her eyes.

‘Friday will be monitoring you. I do not wish to be disturbed, I have things that I need to attend to and you need to finish your work. I expect it completed before you go to bed. You may have free time after you finish, just stay out of trouble. If you need anything, tell Friday.’

‘Ok.’ Replied Riley in a quiet voice. With that, Natasha gestured to the kitchen a few feet away and she gave Riley a fleeting smile that appeared more of a grimace in the child’s opinion, before promptly making her way back down the hallway and out of sight, leaving Riley very confused and worried about what had happened on the mission.

Blinking her eyes quickly, so as not to let the tears fall, Riley walked back to the kitchen and found Steve opening the fridge. He was wearing a grey t-shirt and jogging bottoms and despite a bruise over his left eye, he looked alright. Seeing Riley walking in, he gave her a kind smile, which Riley didn’t return, as she started staring determinedly at the floor, refusing to allow herself to cry.

‘Hey kiddo. What have you been up t…are you ok?’ Seeing the child’s scared expression and her watery eyes, as she finally looked up at him, Steve instantly made his way over to Riley, who shook her head and bit her lip.

‘Are you hurt? What happened?’ Steve knelt down in front of her and gently tilted her chin up, so she was looking at him.

‘No. I…I went exploring and…and I went to see Natasha but…but…Natasha thought I was an intruder and she pushed me against a wall and she had a…a knife…and I got scared and she doesn’t seem right and she’s scary and she hates me now and…’

‘-hey, hey hey. You’re alright.’ Steve cooed softly, as tears started slipping down the child’s face, which he brushed away with his thumb, before giving her a sad smile.

‘Let’s have a seat, hmm?’ Riley nodded and allowed Steve to guide her into the living room and onto one of the large sofas, before he sat down next to her and sighed heavily.

‘Nat doesn’t hate you, Kid, she’s just dealing with some stuff. As you know, we went on a mission and…let’s just say that it could have gone better than it did. I agree with the scary part though, she can be pretty scary sometimes - don’t tell her I said that.’ He winked at her and Riley gave him a small smile and she then frowned.

‘What happened?’ She asked in a small voice, her eyes flickering to the bruise on his eye and bruises that she hadn’t seen before on his knuckles.

Steve looked at her as if debating how to approach this and after a moment or two he tilted his head and spoke in a careful voice.

‘We were asked to infiltrate a Hydra base. Should have been easy in and easy out. However, we were ambushed by somebody from Natasha’s past and they got away.’ Riley immediately knew that he was missing a ton of information out, but she didn’t pry, instead she nodded and wiped a sleeve over her eyes.

‘You said that Nat pulled a knife on you?’ Riley nodded again and sniffled, as Steve gave her a sympathetic smile.

‘At least she didn’t almost shoot you on sight. She’s done that with me before.’ Steve joked lightly, but Riley’s eyes widened at this, and he hastily continued speaking in an effort to calm her down.

‘-she didn’t actually shoot me, I just meant that she is kind of on edge after missions...basically, I’m just trying to say that after a bad mission, Nat goes to the firing range. It helps her to feel in control. She sometimes has…ur…flashbacks from her past and it takes her a minute to remember where she is - this hasn’t happened for a long time. I’m not going into details, as it’s her story to tell, however, I do know, that she doesn’t hate you. What happened today…it took its toll on her. Just give her some time and she’ll be alright. More importantly, how did you even get into the firing range?’

‘I asked Friday and she told me where it was.’ Steve raised an eyebrow quizzically and then addressed the ceiling.

‘Friday? This true?’

_‘Yes, Captain Rogers. Riley found a ‘loophole’ in the Babysitter protocol - as she was not allowed inside without an adult; there was an adult inside, so my protocol was not violated. However, Agent Romanoff has corrected this and updated the protocol._’ Steve nodded in understanding and then looked at Riley, who was running her fingers over her bears fur.

‘You ok Kiddo?’

‘Hmm.’

‘I’ll bet that Natasha wants you to finish that essay in the kitchen, right?’ Riley nodded, as Steve gestured to the kitchen counter and wiggled his eyebrows at her.

‘How about we watch a movie instead?’

‘A movie?’

‘Yep, Captain’s orders.’ Riley nodded, smiling as Steve reached over and rubbed her shoulder.

‘I’ve just got to make a quick call, ok? Get the movie set up, I won’t be a minute.’ Riley watched as Steve stood up and pulled his phone out of his pocket, before leaving the room.

***

_‘I’m on a break for a reason. This better be good Cap.’_

‘We’ve got a problem. Natasha’s in a bad way.’

_‘What happened?’_

‘Infiltration mission went south. We were ambushed.’

_‘By who?’_

‘I’m not sure, but whoever it was, it’s spooked Nat and she’s struggling. I haven’t seen her like this since Ultron. The person who ambushed us escaped and Natasha won’t talk to me. She just pulled a knife out on Riley and has been at the shooting range for a few hours. I thought she’d be out by now. Riley said that her eyes looked empty. The Kid was petrified of her. I’d go and see Nat myself, but I think it would just make it worse.’

_‘Shit. Yeah... leave her alone for now. I’m on my way.’_

‘How long?’

_‘About two hours, give or take.’_

‘Great. Thanks Clint.’

_‘Of course. Make sure the Kid is alright. See ya soon Cap.’_

‘I will do. See you in a bit.’


	30. It will all be okay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha finds comfort in her best friend<3

With every bullet that shot from her guns into the moving targets, perfectly getting lodged into the bullseyes, Natasha felt as if she had full control again. Her back muscles clenched and ached from how long she had been down in the firing range, but she carried on, relishing in her body’s agony; it distracted her from her mind.

She sighed as she realised that she had gone through yet another box of bullets and she carefully holstered her gun, before making her way to the storage cupboard on the other side of the room. She opened it, to get another box. It was empty. She had used all the bullets in the cupboard. Fuck.

Pursing her lips, she bent down to the bottom of the cupboard and pulled out one of Clint’s many Bow and Arrows. She was not as skilled as him in this area of weaponry, although she knew her way around a bow.

There were hundreds of bullet casings littered round the floor of the firing range, but Natasha couldn’t bring herself to care. Bow and Arrows in hand, she walked purposefully back towards the targets and lined herself up for the first shot.

The arrow whizzed past her with such precision that it was quickly embedded in what used to be the bullseye of the main target – now, it was so blackened and full of bullet holes that it was unrecognisable.

In that moment, she was the most upset that she had been in a long time. Her thoughts were screaming at her and no amount of gun fire or arrows was helping, although she couldn’t bring herself to stop. The mission should have been simple, easy. Easy in and easy out. It would have been, if _she _wasn’t there, waiting for them like prey. Then there was what had happened with Riley…she was just a Kid…she never should have seen that side of her.

She was a monster.

Natasha blinked through the beads of sweat that were pouring down her face and she ignored the twinges of pain in her forehead, as she shot arrow after arrow.

Her thoughts buzzed around in her head louder and louder, until Natasha was screaming at them to stop, bow and arrow forgotten on the floor. She screamed and yelled with such force, that she found herself gasping for air that she had been forcing out from her lungs. Her knees ached from where she threw herself to the ground, surrounded by the bullet casings and broken arrows.

The face of the ambusher haunted her mind. Natasha hadn’t seen the ambusher until the end of the fight, where she was hiding on a rooftop and had been watching her and Steve from a distance. By the time that Natasha had made eye contact with her and they had both shot bullets at each other to no avail, (with Steve pre-occupied by the Hydra Soldiers), Natasha had managed to run over to catch her, but the woman had already vanished. It was a reminder for Natasha, that no matter how hard she tried, she would always be haunted by her past.

She was pulled out of the thoughts, as she saw that the large red light by the targets had flickered three times and the door was opening, to reveal the concerned face of Clint Barton, as he took in the surroundings of the room. He glanced at the bullet casings, the arrows and the half crazed look in the assassin’s eyes in the middle of the room, who looked a moment away from breaking down.

‘You know, I miss one mission and everything goes to shit.’ Natasha’s eyes narrowed as her best friend walked through the door, closing it carefully behind him, before he gave her a sad smile. Natasha glared at him. She didn’t want to talk, she wanted to yell and punch and kick and shoot; however, something in her loosened at the sight of Clint and she found herself tearing her gaze away from him, as she walked over to a bench on the side and she started to stare resolutely out of the window.

‘Jeez, have we got any bullets left? Shit, you better not have used all my arrows Tasha.’ Clint said jokingly, in an effort to make the atmosphere less tense. Natasha didn’t respond, she just kept staring out of the window; the mission replying itself in her mind and also, the scared face of Riley which kept popping up in her mind too. Humming quietly, Clint walked over to where she was sitting and took a seat near her on the bench, looking out of the window too, seemingly figuring out what to say.

‘What are you doing here? I asked to be left alone and you are currently a thousand miles away from where you should be.’ Natasha’s voice broke the silence, like a knife and Clint looked at her like she had grown three heads.

‘You’re joking right?’

‘No. I am not. I am fine. I just needed some time. You shouldn’t have come.’

‘Tasha. You are not fine. Don’t bullshit me. Cap called me in and for good reason apparently. I came back because I’m worried about you, as are the rest of the team.’ Clint said in a firm voice, gesturing around them both at all the bullet casings and broken arrows, whilst Natasha just glared at him.

‘Nobody needs to be worried about me. I am fine.’ She repeated in a dangerous voice, as her eyes flashed. Clint was not phased by this at all and he just raised an eyebrow at her.

‘Okay, I’ll play along. You are fine. 110% fine. That’s why you’ve just used the entire firing range bullet capacity, most of my arrows – of which there were a lot; you’re clearly injured, but this sure as hell isn’t the Medbay, there’s an upset Kid in the living room and you look as if you’ve seen a ghost. However, you’re right, you’re ‘fine.’’ He gestured with his fingers and Natasha huffed, before looking back at the window.

‘So, do you want to explain any of that to me, because I’m sure as hell lost right now. Steve said that you saw someone on the mission? What the hell happened? You are not fine Tasha, don’t give me that bullshit.’ Natasha rubbed a hand down her face tiredly and grimaced as she brushed past the cut on her forehead. She looked at her best friend and something in her broke at the firm, but concerned expression on his face and she felt some of her anger start to fade away, as she started to talk.

‘We went on a mission. Me and Steve.’ Clint nodded, encouraging her to go on.

‘It was all going fine, albeit slightly messier than we intended…and I saw someone; someone from my past, who I haven’t thought about in a long time.’ Natasha stopped talking and clenched her jaw slightly, before continuing.

‘In the Red Room, I did not have any friends, but there was this one girl, a few years younger than me and we got on quite well. She was moved up into the higher classes, when the instructors saw her potential and I was asked to train her. We grew quite close and when you were sent to kill me and I deferred to SHIELD, I had to leave her behind as she was too controlled by the Red Room. I should have gone back to save her…I just didn’t, as I knew that her allegiance was too strong with them. Her name is Yelena Belova and she was…is…my sister, in a way. I saw her today. So, I did what I know. I came down here and shot bullets. Shooting requires precision, no time for thinking about anything else.’

‘Shit Tasha, that’s heavy.’

‘Hmm.’

‘It’s okay, not to be okay you know? We all have baggage and shit to deal with, especially if one of us is triggered by something on a mission. The team will understand.’

‘It isn’t the team that I am worried about.’ Clint nodded in understanding and put a reassuring arm on her shoulder. She flinched with pain, as he made contact with her shoulder and it was then that she realised that she had probably strained a muscle or two, due to all the shooting.

‘The Kid will be alright, don’t worry, Cap’s with her now.’ She looked over at him and for the first time in a long time, Clint saw raw emotion in her eyes. She stared at her hands and spoke quietly, feeling the rest of her anger at what happened and at herself, dissipate slowly and she found that it was then replaced with sadness.

‘Riley shouldn’t have even been down here. She was never meant to see me like…like this; like who I really am, the Black Widow. I didn’t even recognise her Clint, I pinned her to the wall with a knife to her throat. She’s a Kid. I saw the fear in her eyes and it was my own fault, I put it there. I’m a monster and she will never want anything to do with me again and I don’t blame her.’ Natasha frowned as she felt sudden wetness on her cheek. She reached up a finger and it was then that she realised that she was crying.

‘Tasha. You are not the person who you were all those years ago and you are most definitively not a monster. You had a shock and it brought back some pretty fucked up memories, that’s perfectly understandable. Riley is just a Kid, but I’m pretty sure she’ll understand the reasons for your actions, when you explain it to her.’

‘If she will even be in the same room as me.’ Natasha said sarcastically, wiping another tear from her cheek, just as Clint moved over to her and looked at her seriously, opening his arms.

‘She will. It will all be okay. Come here Tash.’ Natasha’s face crumpled slightly at the gentle tone of his voice and she nodded and accepted his embrace, leaning her head on his shoulder as they both sat in a comfortable silence.

After a few seconds, Natasha pulled away and took a deep breath, before looking at Clint seriously.

‘We never speak of this again. Agreed?’

‘Agreed.’

‘Okay, enough of this emotional shit then, let’s clean up this mess and go.’

‘Why do I have to help with the clean up?!’ Natasha suppressed a laugh and shrugged, as she started to pick up bullet cases, before looking at him playfully.

‘You’re the one who wanted to come and help, so get your ass over here and help me clean up.’ Clint sighed and shook his head in amusement, before he walked over to help Natasha. After a few minutes or so, when they had almost finished tidying the room, she gently bumped his shoulder and gave him a kind smile, which he returned instantly.

‘Thanks Clint. I’m glad you’re here.’

‘Anytime Nat.’


	31. Understandings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha explains to Riley about why she acted like she did earlier and Riley opens up to Natasha.

After having spoken to Steve in private about what Riley had told him earlier, gotten a shower, attended to the cut on her forehead and having gotten dressed in some lounge clothes, Natasha made her way downstairs and prepared herself to talk to Riley.

Stepping out of the elevator, Natasha smelt delicious wafts of pizza and heard soft talking coming from the living room. On further inspection, she saw that Clint, Steve, Sam and Riley were sitting on two different sofas, munching on takeaway pizza, the three formers talking quietly, as Riley sat silently watching the film, her expression rather sad. Natasha felt her stomach drop at the sight of the sad child and her eyes then glanced to the TV. She saw that there was an animation on that looked to be about a rather fat Panda, who seemed to be attempting to do karate; Riley seemed to be interested in it, although she didn’t smile much; her slice of pizza was also hardly touched.

Clint jumped up and declared that he was going to get more pizza, from the rest of the boxes that were in the kitchen, when he walked over to the kitchen and saw Natasha standing by the elevator, her eyes focussed on the back of Riley’s head.

‘Hey Nat. Come and join the fun. We’re watching a funny animation about…’

‘-a fat Panda who does martial arts?’ Natasha interrupted; her eyes focussed on Riley.

‘Yup.’

‘The Kid looks sad.’ Natasha stated bluntly, as Clint hummed slightly.

‘She hasn’t said much really.’

‘Steve told me that she thinks that I hate her now and that she finds me ‘scary’.’ Clint sighed and gave her a sad smile.

‘She just doesn’t understand why you did what you did. She wanted to sit by herself on the other sofa and she was a bit confused, as to why I’m back, but apart from that, she’s been pretty quiet. You going to talk to her?’

‘If she’ll let me, yes.’ Clint nodded and went to go and get some more pizza, holding some out to Natasha who shook her head politely. Natasha then took a deep breath, before walking into the living room. Everyone looked up as she walked in and she gave a small smile to the room. Riley glanced at her and visibly froze, before she turned back to stare at the TV, which made Natasha’s heart plummet. Steve scooted over and offered his seat to Natasha who subtly shook her head and Steve nodded in understanding.

‘Hey Nat, pizza?’ Sam held out a slice of pizza to her and she shook her head again, her eyes glancing subtly at Riley, who had yet to acknowledge her presence.

‘Maybe later, thanks Sam.’

Clint walked back into the room and flopped down on an armchair, before eating his pizza. ‘So, what’s this vicious tiger’s deal then, squirt?’ Riley just shrugged at Clint’s attempt to lighten the tense atmosphere and she kept her eyes glued to the screen; Steve and Sam then excused themselves to train, seeing as though it was almost 7pm. Natasha walked over to where Riley was sitting, putting a smile on her face, in an effort to ease the child’s nerves.

‘Hey Kid, I wondered, could we have a little chat? I’m so sorry about earlier.’ Riley didn’t reply, she just kept her eyes on the TV, but Natasha saw that she was trembling slightly. Natasha crouched down near, but not close enough to touch her, so that she wouldn’t feel like she was being towered over; Clint swallowed a bit of pizza, subtly watching the interaction between the two of them, he then spoke softly.

‘Squirt, I know that what happened earlier was really scary for you, but I think that Natasha wants to explain why she did what she did. Would that be ok?’ The young girl didn’t reply, she just stared blankly at the TV; Natasha frowned at this, seeing that she was completely avoiding all eye contact.

‘Kid?’ Natasha then froze, as Riley’s face suddenly crumpled and she bowed her head.

‘Riley?’ The little girl shook her head back and forth and Natasha started to grow concerned. She was about to ask her if she was okay, when suddenly, before she could blink, Riley quickly stood up and ran through the slightly ajar door and out into the garden. Natasha swore under her breath in Russian and looked at Clint.

‘Well, that could have gone a lot better.’ Clint nodded and gestured to the garden.

‘Want me to go talk to her?’ Natasha stood up and shook her head, looking out into the darkening garden.

‘No, I’ll go. I made my bed, now I have to lay in it. Thanks though.’ Clint nodded in understanding and reached for the remote, before changing the channel, as Natasha made her way outside and into the garden, looking around for any sign of Riley.

***

Riley kicked a stone on the floor, as she sat on a bench, a little bit aways from the Compound. She had found this bench a few weeks ago, whilst exploring and had quickly determined that it was a very good place to sit and think, or to get away from everyone - the reason being the latter for her visit that particular evening. Looking over at the Compound gardens and forest in the distance, she watched as the evening sun began to set and shone a warm glow across the snowy scenery. It was very cold, but Riley didn’t care; she just wanted to be left alone.

Earlier, after what had happened in the firing range, Riley had instantly been taken back in her mind, to how her foster father had done the exact same thing to her and had pulled out a knife on her once. However, he had actually nipped her with the knife as a reminder not to tell anyone about what he was doing to her; she trailed her fingers down a small but deep cut on her left forearm and she shivered, but not from the cold.

Of course Riley knew stories of the Black Widow and had seen the Avengers on TV a few times, but she had never actually been afraid to be near Natasha before – even on the day when they first met, when Natasha saved her from a group of youths, she hadn’t been afraid of her. However, looking into the empty eyes of the assassin earlier, as she pulled a knife on her, Riley realised just how scary Natasha was and it really made her think of just how dangerous she was.

Riley sighed and continued to watch the sun set, listening to the birds chirp in the distance and the gentle wind that rustled the trees near her. Being outside soothed her, she felt less…trapped, more like she could be herself. The thoughts about her foster father and the incident that happened earlier continued to float around her head and for the first time in a while, Riley felt like she was all alone again.

‘You’re a hard Kid to find.’

Riley turned around and saw Natasha walking up to where she was sitting. She looked at the assassins eyes and saw the familiar green ones looking back at her – no longer empty and something in her loosened at this. She really thought that her and Natasha had bonded over the past two months in a way and that things could turn out to be ok, but after what had happened earlier, Riley didn’t know what to think about anything; all she knew was that she was now scared of Natasha and she hated it, because she didn’t want to be. She figured that she should give her a chance to explain what happened though, she owed her that much.

‘Maybe because I don’t want to be found.’ Natasha hummed and gestured to the bench.

‘Can I sit with you?’ Riley shrugged, trying not to show how scared she was.

‘It’s a free country.’ Natasha sat down next to Riley, within an arm’s reach and they both watched the sun set over the gardens in silence, until Natasha spoke up softly.

‘Steve told me what you said to him earlier. Do you want to talk about it?’ Riley shrugged again and subconsciously rubbed her left forearm.

‘Why do you think that I hate you now?’ Natasha asked casually, turning to look at Riley, who shrugged again and then replied after a few moments.

‘Because I wasn’t meant to go to the firing range.’

‘Well for the record, I do not hate you. I would never hate you. I may not approve of you exploring places that are off limits, however, I do not hate you. The protocol should not have had a loophole in it and that was mine and Tony’s fault; but it has been rectified and what happened earlier, will not happen again.’ Riley nodded and started pulling at a loose thread on her sweater.

‘Steve also told me, that you think that I’m scary? I’m not surprised. If somebody pulled a knife on me and pushed me to a wall suddenly, I’d think they were pretty scary too.’ Natasha said, cutting to the chase and Riley nodded.

‘You…you said you thought I was an intruder.’

‘I did.’

‘Would you have…taken me down?’ Natasha’s eyebrows furrow slightly before she says bluntly, ‘kill you, you mean?’ Riley nods and bites her lip.

‘No. Never.’ Natasha replied immediately.

‘But…I don’t understand. Why did you look so…not like you? For a moment…I thought you might kill me...’ Riley admits, ignoring the sting of her eyes as tears threaten to fall. She looks away back at the darkening garden and hears Natasha sigh softly.

‘Did I ever tell you the story about how me and Clint met?’ Riley shook her head, surprised at the change in topic and she looked back over at Natasha who was looking at her intently, as if deciding whether or not to tell her something.

‘The thing is...’ she said a little unsurely, ‘-I wasn’t always on the good side.’ Riley tilted her head in confusion; she had never thought about what Natasha’s past had been like, she just assumed that she had always been on the good side.

‘I was trained in a place called the Red Room, a place made to train girls into super assassins, capable of killing without a second thought. Ruthless, secret and deadly. We were injected with a serum, similar to that of Captain America’s – so we wouldn’t age as quickly, were very strong and could take more damage than a normal human. I was their best student and…that’s how I became the Black Widow.’

‘You were…you were a bad guy?’ Natasha smirked slightly at the childish answer and nodded.

‘Yes, you could say that. I did a lot of really horrible things and because of this, I got on SHIELD’s radar in a bad way. Clint…Agent Barton, was sent to kill me.’ Riley’s eyes widen at this.

‘Clint was going to…to kill you?!’

‘Yes…well no. He was sent to, but instead, he made a different call. He pointed an arrow at my head and offered me a job; a chance to fight the good fight. So, I accepted and deferred from the Red Room, leaving behind that life, because I knew that it wasn’t what I wanted.’ Riley nodded and waited for Natasha to continue.

‘On the mission with Steve, I saw somebody from my past…from my time in the Red Room; somebody who was important to me, but who was so controlled by the Red Room that they didn’t come with me, when I deferred. Due to my…shock of seeing them, I wasn’t quick enough and they got away, it was my fault. So, we came back here today and I did what I know…I started shooting. Shooting requires precision, no time for thinking of anything else.’ At Riley’s confused expression, Natasha continued, speaking in simpler terms that she would understand.

‘Basically, sometimes after really bad missions – like today, I get caught up in my head a bit…kind of like flashbacks from my past and so I take myself to the firing range or the gym and work out, until I feel better. Unfortunately, I didn’t expect to see you there and I thought that you were an intruder, not you. Like sometimes, when you have bad dreams and you wake up, you think that you’re still in your dream, that’s kind of what it’s like for me, but I’m awake. Does that make sense?’

‘Yeah. So, you were caught up in your head and thought that I was someone else.’ Natasha sighed in relief that Riley understood and was no longer looking at her as if she was scared of her, although she still looked quite sad.

‘Yes, but that does not happen often and when it does, I stay as far away from everyone as I can, until I feel better. I am so sorry that you saw me like that and that I pulled a knife on you.’

‘And pushed me to a wall.’ Riley added and Natasha nodded.

‘-and pushed you to a wall.’ They sat in silence for a few moments, until Riley spoke up.

‘I forgive you.’ Natasha looked over at Riley, who gave her a small smile, subconsciously tracing the scar under her sweater again. Natasha blinked, surprised that Riley would have forgiven her that quickly, if at all.

‘Thank you.’ Then after a pause, ‘you know that I would never ever hurt you, right?’

‘I know, it just…it reminded me of something that happened and I got really scared.’ Natasha didn’t push for an explanation, which Riley appreciated, she just raised an eyebrow questioningly and Riley bit her lip.

‘…one time…um…my foster father did the same thing to me…after one of his…um games.’ Understanding dawned on Natasha’s face and she felt a new wave of guilt crash over her, however, she waited patiently for Riley to continue but instead the little girl rolled up her sleeve and showed Natasha the small but deep scar on her left forearm.

‘…but he actually used the knife and threatened to kill me.’

‘So, you thought for a moment that I would do the same.’ Natasha said in an emotionless voice, her eyes surveying the cut and Riley nodded, before rolling her sleeve back down.

‘I’m so sorry Riley. Nothing I can say will make up for what happened, but I can assure you, that it will never happen again. I always do my upmost to make sure that you are safe and happy and that will not change. I never meant for you to see me like that, like a monster.’

‘It’s okay, I understand now. I know you didn’t mean it. You’re not a monster, just like how you said before that I’m not one. We both have shitty pasts, but like you said to me before, it doesn’t define us and we can choose who we get to be.’ Natasha opened her mouth to reprimand her for her language, but she let it slide and nodded in agreement, feeling a surge of pride towards Riley instead.

‘It is not okay, but I need you to know, that I would never ever hurt you. You’re right, we do get to choose who we get to be. I am capable of a lot of bad things, but hurting you, that isn’t one of them. I care about you very much.’ Riley’s heart warmed at this and she knew in that moment that everything would be alright between them. She smiled at Natasha who smiled back.

‘Come here Mischief.’ Natasha opened her arms and Riley grinned at the nickname, before she instantly curled into her embrace, relief washing over her. After a minute or two, Natasha hummed in thought and then suddenly started to tickle Riley’s side, making the young girl giggle in surprise.

‘Am I still scary?’

‘No! St-stop! Nat-Natasha!’ Riley squealed as Natasha continued to tickle her, grinning as the little girl laughed and squirmed in her grasp. She stopped after a few seconds and smiled fondly as Riley gasped for breath, grinning from ear to ear.

‘Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m starving. If we’re lucky, maybe there will be some pizza left and we can finish that movie about the fat panda?’ Riley laughed and nodded, as the assassin stood up and offered her a hand; then they both walked back to the Compound together.


	32. Christmas traditions at the Barton Farm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha and Riley come to spend Christmas with the Bartons:)

It was a few weeks after Natasha and Steve had come back from their mission and things had settled back into a normal routine. Riley was progressing well in her lessons with Natasha and was having fun with other members of the team, when she wasn’t learning. 

That particular morning, Natasha and Riley were flying out to the Barton’s farm to spend 2 weeks with them for the holidays. Christmas was in 4 days and after New Year, they would be coming back to the Compound. Riley was very excited at the prospect of actually celebrating a proper Christmas for the first time, however, she was very nervous too. Natasha had given her the instruction to pack a suitcase, however, she had come to check on the 11 year olds progress and was suppressing a smile, as she watched Riley jump repeatedly on the overflowing suitcase.

‘You know that we’re going for 2 weeks and not 2 months, right?’ Natasha leant on the doorframe of Riley’s bedroom and watched, as Riley continued to sit on her overflowing suitcase and attempted to close it, with little success.

‘Well you’re the one who told me to pack all these clothes!’ Riley huffed, jumping up and down on the suitcase, indignantly looking at Natasha, who smiled.

‘Let me see.’ Reluctantly, Riley stood up and opened the suitcase, as Natasha walked over and proceeded to unpack everything.

‘Hey! I just folded and packed all that!’ Natasha scoffed and held up a screwed up pair of jeans and Riley blushed.

‘If you call this being folded and packed, then we’ve got a serious issue here.’ Natasha joked lightly, as Riley shrugged and sat down on the bed next to where Natasha was now folding her clothes properly. 

‘I never needed to know how to do it, didn’t have much growing up – remember, I came here with one pair of clothes.’ Riley pointed out, and the assassin paused and looked at her, as she was watching her interestedly; Natasha then gave her a kind smile and gestured to the small pile of clothes and the suitcase. 

‘Well, watch and learn. This is how you properly fold clothes and pack a suitcase…’ Natasha then chuckled and took out a pile of comic books, before addressing the child. ‘-first things first, you need underwear and you don’t need 15 comic books.’ 

***

When Riley was all packed, Natasha then flew the both of them to the Barton’s farm, where they were spending the Christmas holidays. 

‘Hello, your favourite guests have arrived.’ Natasha called, opening the front door, with Riley smiling and walking behind her, looking around for any sign of the Barton’s. They both took off their winter coats, shoes and put their suitcases by the door.

‘In here Nat!’ Called Laura’s voice from the kitchen. Natasha and Riley both then walked to the kitchen, where Laura was mixing what smelt like gingerbread in a large bowl. Laura smiled as they both walked in; set the bowl down and then went immediately over to hug them. 

‘Looks like you’re baking up a storm.’ Laura laughed and wiped some flour from her forehead, before nodding at Natasha, who was smirking.

‘Yes, I guess you should say that. You always were better at this stuff than me.’ 

‘Not the putting it together part though, just the baking.’ Riley blinked and looked up at Natasha.

‘You bake other stuff than just butterfly muffins?!’ The assassin quirked an eyebrow and nodded in amusement at Riley who looked at her indignantly.

‘You didn’t tell me!’

‘You didn’t ask.’ Came the simple reply and Riley huffed, before Natasha ruffled her hair and turned to Laura, who was currently rolling out her mixture.

‘Where’s the herd?’

‘Out picking a Christmas tree. Cooper decided that there weren’t enough lights on the tree that we originally had. So, he plugged more lights into the super charged electric socket that powers the tractor outside, as-well as the ones that were already on the tree; lets just say that it was a good job that Clint was there and was able to put the fire out in time before the whole place went up.’ Natasha burst out laughing, but Riley looked horrified.

‘He almost burnt the farm down?!’ Laura gave her a dismissive shrug and continued rolling some gingerbread mixture, as Natasha pulled out an apron from a drawer.

‘It happens at least once a month. We’re kept on our toes here. Nat, fancy lending a hand before they all get back?’ 

‘Do you even have to ask?’

‘No, I suppose not. Riley sweetie, would you like to help Nat too, or would you rather go and play?’ Riley watched as Natasha finished tying her apron and then started to gather a large amount of bowls and ingredients. 

‘Um…I don’t know how to do…whatever it is that you’re making.’ 

‘You mean to tell me, that you’ve never made or eaten a gingerbread house before?’ Riley shook her head awkwardly as Laura gave her a pitying look and Natasha hummed in thought, then quickly tied up Riley’s hair for her and handed her a smaller apron to put on, which she did, albeit being confused the entire time. 

‘Anyone can bake, come on, I’ll show you how to make some more gingerbread – we need enough for at least 3 houses. Then later, when it’s cooked and the others get back, we build and decorate the houses – it’s one of the big Christmas traditions in this house.’ Reaching over to tie Riley’s apron, Natasha then showed the little girl how to start on the mixture, as Riley smiled at the fact that she was being involved in a family tradition.

***

If Natasha thought that they were messy before the decorating began, then she was very wrong. She still had yet to figure out, how more of the icing ended up in the children’s hair and on the floor, than on the 3 Gingerbread houses (hers and Riley’s, Cooper and Clint’s, Lila, Nate and Lauras). She prided herself on many things but making a house out of constructed gingerbread was not one of them. After an hour, Natasha stepped back with Riley, to look at their finished product. Whilst the others finished up theirs.

They had tried to make a typical Gingerbread house – that Natasha had had to google an image of, by using many different flavours of icing – that Clint had kindly bought for them, along with many bags of little gumdrop sweets and chocolate buttons and Natasha was proud to say that it looked quite decent for Riley’s first attempt.

‘What do you think? Good enough for a gingerbread man?’ Riley giggled and pinched a gumdrop from the roof of the house, before sticking it in her mouth and sucking on it eagerly. 

‘I’ll take that as a yes. Good job Gordon Ramsay – let’s take a picture of it!’ Riley then smiled and pretended to take a large bite out of the roof of the gingerbread house and Natasha laughed, then she took a picture of her and then took one of the gingerbread house, before having a look at the other teams. Natasha walked over to Clint and Cooper and smirked.

‘Not bad, but the structure is a little sloppy Clint. It’s not going to hold.’

‘Nah, it’ll be fine.’ Riley then watched as Clint put on the final touches to the roof and Cooper suddenly yelled ‘NO DAD!’ as the roof to their gingerbread house caved in. 

Everyone burst out laughing, as Clint got crumbs of gingerbread all over himself and Cooper, and sweets fell everywhere – to the children’s delight.

‘Told you.’

‘Shut up Romanoff.’

‘Auntie Nat! Look at ours!’ Natasha turned to Lila, who was pointing at hers, Laura’s and Nates gingerbread house, with pride. Riley had to admit, that they had won, as their gingerbread house looked beautiful. Little gumdrops were stuck on the roof, with piped icing and there were little flowers all over that had been iced on. 

‘Well, we have a definite winner. Good job.’ Natasha said grinning, as Lila then looked over at her mother with a large smile.

‘Can we eat some now Mom?’

***

Three days passed and the days were full of tree decorating, sledging in the snow, making letters to Santa (Riley was even persuaded to do one by Natasha) and the atmosphere in the house was infectious. Riley had never been as excited for anything in her life; the entire farm looked so magical. 

It was Christmas Eve and the children were all being shepherded to bed by the adults. Much to Riley’s confusion, but excitement, the Barton children had insisted on her helping them to bring in some cookies, milk and carrots for Santa and his Reindeer – as apparently it was what you did. Natasha took a few stealthy pictures of all the children, who looked very cute in their matching Elf pajamas – curtesy of Clint, who had bought them earlier in the day for them all. 

‘Right, well done everyone, time for bed now please. Story will be in Lila’s room tonight! Remember, no-one is allowed back down here until morning!’ The Barton children ran upstairs, after kissing Laura and Natasha, with Clint, who trailed behind them and then frowned and turned around.

‘Aren’t you coming squirt?’ Riley’s eyes widened from her place by Natasha and she looked at Clint curiously.

‘I’m allowed?’ 

‘Of course you are! That’s why I said everyone - It’s a tradition to read Twas The Night Before Christmas, on Christmas Eve! Get your little Elf butt up here!’ Riley grinned and looked at Natasha, who nodded fondly and gestured upstairs.

‘I’ll be up soon to tuck you in after your story, ok?’ The girl nodded and said goodnight to Laura, before running up the stairs after Clint.

After the story, Natasha and Laura peeked into Lila’s room, where all four children were asleep on makeshift beds on the floor, all cuddled up to each other, with Clint finishing the story. Smirking, she crept inside and walked over to Riley, before carefully lifting the little girl up, who was fast asleep. Clint and Laura did the same with Cooper and Nate and the adults made their way out of Lila’s room quietly to the children’s respective bedrooms, before they walked back downstairs.

‘Well, it’s getting late, best get some shut eye before we’re up at the crack of dawn with the kids.’ Clint said quietly, as Laura nodded in agreement. She had just finished putting presents under the tree, a little while later on. Natasha also nodded, as she came back into the living room, with the plate of cookies and carrots, now with just a few crumbs left and a finished glass of milk. They all smiled and wished each other a Merry Christmas as the clock chimed midnight and then they bid each other good night, ready for the morning. 

Natasha took one last look at the Christmas Tree and at the presents that awaited the children (mostly) under the tree and she pondered the thought that Riley would have her first proper Christmas that morning and she found herself smiling. 


	33. Christmas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha comforts Riley after a bad dream and the little girl enjoys her first proper Christmas.

Sometime later in the night – although it seemed like a manner of seconds to Natasha, who was exhausted, she was awoken by a small noise, much like a whimper which was coming from the side of her bed. Jolting awake, she sat up and felt under her pillow for her knife handle. She grasped it firmly under her pillow, ready to attack if needed, before she slowly turned the lamp by her bed on. Immediately seeing who it was, she hastily put the knife away and quickly surveyed the person in front of her to assess the situation.

‘Natasha? A…are you aw…awake?’ Riley was standing there clutching her bear, looking at the assassin nervously.

‘I am now. What happened? Is everyone ok?’ Natasha said, quickly waking herself up and getting herself mentally into mission mode.

‘Um yeah…they’re fine I think…’ Riley said, as Natasha’s eyebrows furrowed.

‘So, then what’s the problem, that made you wake me up at…’, she paused and checked the time, ‘…4am?’

‘…I…I um…I had a bad dream.’ Whatever Natasha was expecting, that wasn’t it. Since she had met Riley over two months ago, the young girl had never once gone into her bedroom after a nightmare seeking comfort. Usually, Natasha would hear her screaming or find her in the living room at ungodly hours in the morning, so this was definitely new. Natasha found herself at a loss for what to do as Riley had actively gone to wake her up and upon closer inspection, she was very upset, if the tear tracks on her face were anything to go by.

‘Oh, Mischief. Come here.’ Natasha then gestured to the bed and Riley walked over and sat gingerly on the edge, as she bit her lip and blinked as a tear fell out. Natasha then opened her arms in a silent invitation and Riley all but launched herself at her and cried silently into her shoulder for a few moments, whilst Natasha whispered soft reassurances to her.

‘Do you want to talk about it?’ Hugging Cuddles to her chest, Riley sniffled and started talking quietly, between her sobs.

‘I dreamt that…that Santa said that…that I was b…bad and I didn’t get any p…presents – because…because I never did before and everyone was h…happy but I had to live outside in…in the snow and I was s…sad again! Santa ha…hates me!’ Natasha blinked as she processed this, again, not expecting that. Ever since Riley had come to the Compound, she hadn’t once had a nightmare that was not about her past and so this was very new territory for probably the both of them.

‘Well, I can guarantee you, that nobody is making you live outside in the snow for starters, ok?’ Riley looked up at Natasha and nodded, wiping a hand down her face as her breath hitched.

‘-Secondly, I don’t know much about Father Christmas – however, I do know for certain that he doesn’t hate you.’

‘He does, that’s why I never…never had a Christmas pr…present before!’ Riley sobbed, turning her face into Natasha’s chest, as the assassin carded her fingers through her hair.

‘I don’t think that Father Christmas visits Orphanages, sweetheart and I’m pretty sure that your previous…guardians would have probably just thrown your presents away, because they were horrible people. I can also guarantee you that, you are definitely on the nice list and he doesn’t hate you.’ Riley pondered this for a moment, sniffling.

‘How do you know?’ Natasha smiled and tilted the child’s chin upwards slightly and looked her in the eyes.

‘I know, because you have had a very horrible past and despite all that, you are growing up into a lovely, kind, intelligent young woman and those are all the qualities that put children on the good list.’ Riley gave her a small smile and nodded, blinking tiredly, her head becoming heavier on Natasha’s shoulder.

‘However, Santa doesn’t come to houses when people are awake, so you need to try and go back to sleep.’ Natasha then debated something for a brief moment and then lifted up the comforter of her bed. She didn’t know if she was overstepping, as this all seemed very…parental, but she didn’t like the idea of Riley possibly crying herself to sleep on Christmas Eve/early Christmas Day morning in her own room, reliving her past experiences of Christmas, if she couldn’t sleep.

‘Hop in, Kiddo.’ Riley didn’t protest at all, she simply nodded and then scooted under the comforter. She yawned softly as Natasha tucked her in, turned off the lamp and then laid down next to her, brushing a stray curl off her forehead.

‘…G’night…Natasha…thank you.’ Riley said sleepily, her eyes fluttering closed, as she curled up closer to Natasha and her breath evened out. Natasha watched as she fell asleep and then she pulled her closer and closed her own eyes.

‘Good night Mischief.’

***

To say that Christmas Day went well and was probably one of Natasha’s favourites, was an understatement. When everybody was awake, a few hours after Riley’s nightmare, they all made their way downstairs to have pancakes in the shape of Christmas trees and open the presents (of which there were a lot and the adults would agree that they possibly went a bit overboard that year). The smell of the Turkey cooking was divine and everybody was hyped up on sugar and general joyfulness.

‘LOOK! SANTA DIDN’T FORGET ME! HE ACTUALLY GOT ME A PRESENT! I’M ON THE GOOD LIST! YOU WERE RIGHT NATASHA!’ The look on Riley’s face, when she opened her first ever present from ‘Santa’ brought a tear to Clint and Laura’s eyes and Natasha’s – but she would deny it if anyone mentioned it.

‘See, I told you. What did he get you, Kiddo?’ Natasha had gone out to buy Riley a present from ‘Santa’, after she had written her list a few days ago, but also, she had bought her something else, from herself, that she was keeping until last.

‘It’s a new doll! Like the one that Lila has! He got me what I asked for in my letter!’ Natasha smiled and pretended to be shocked by the present, as she opened it for Riley, who immediately went over to Lila and showed her.

‘Awesome! That’s like mine! Come on, there’s loads more to open!’ Clint and Laura smiled and went into the kitchen to make some hot chocolate, as the children started opening their presents again.

‘It’s ok.’ Riley instead went and sat on the floor a bit away from the tree and started to play with her doll, as the Barton children eyed her curiously and Natasha instantly realised what the problem was.

‘Riley? Aren’t you going to check under the tree for more presents?’ Natasha asked, as she helped Nate open a dinosaur playset. Riley looked at her in confusion.

‘But…I already got a present?’ Natasha smiled fondly and finished opening the playset, before she handed it to a smiling Nate. Then she moved to kneel near Riley and gestured to a small pile of presents that were under the tree, untouched.

‘Those are all yours too, Kiddo.’

‘Woah! Who are they from?!’

‘Open them and find out.’ It turned out, that Riley had gotten more than one present, she had gotten a ton, all from the Avengers, Clint and Laura and even Nick Fury (who got her a lock picking set – strictly for Spy stuff, that Natasha wasn’t happy about, as the child got into enough trouble as it was).

Riley couldn’t believe her eyes when she had opened everything. She had gotten a few comic books from Sam and Rhodey, a new dress from Wanda, a new book from Steve and Bucky that were all about fairytales with different endings, Tony had gotten her a mini robot that was like a small version of DUM-E that Riley loved, Bruce had gotten her a small basket of bath bombs, Thor had bought her a nerf gun set, Nick bought her the lock picking set and Clint and Laura had bought her a nail painting kit and a large bar of chocolate.

After Riley had finished giving Clint and Laura a massive hug and had thanked them repeatedly, she demanded to call everyone who had bought her a present and then thanked them too, which Natasha felt very proud of her for doing on her own initiative.

Natasha, Clint and Laura then traded presents amongst themselves, as the children opened their final presents and started playing with their toys; before Clint and Laura made their way into the kitchen to finish cooking Christmas lunch.

‘Hey, Riley? Fancy opening one more? Didn’t think I’d forget you, did you?’ Riley looked up from playing with the Barton kids, at the mention of her name and nodded in surprise, walking over to Natasha, who held out a small box to the little girl.

Earlier, Natasha had given the Barton children one present each and Riley hadn’t thought anything about not receiving one, as she knew that Natasha had known the Barton children since they were born and that she was their Auntie Nat; whereas she had only known her for a few months. However, now, with Natasha in front of her, handing her a small black box, Riley felt an unfamiliar warmth in her stomach and she smiled.

‘Merry Christmas Mischief.’ Riley tentatively took the hand-sized box and opened it. Inside, there was a tiny velvet plush cushion and on top of it, was a silver necklace, with a snowflake charm hanging from it. Natasha grinned as Riley’s mouth hung open and she then reached over to put it on the little girl, who was beaming from ear to ear.

‘It’s…it’s beautiful. Thank you.’ Riley said, gingerly tracing the snowflake with a finger, as Natasha did the clasp at the back.

‘I thought you’d like it. I want you to feel proud to be who you are and this serves as a reminder of that.’ Riley turned around and looked at Natasha before launching herself at the assassin and hugging her tightly. Natasha blinked in surprise and then quickly recovered from the shock at having Riley hug her in such an open manner, (as usually she didn’t typically like being touched and wasn’t one to ask for hugs as much as other children her age), she then hugged her back tightly and smiled.

‘I love it.’ Natasha smiled and hugged Riley tighter, before Laura’s voice called out from the kitchen: ‘Christmas Lunch is ready!’

***

After a fun filled day of games and playing with toys, the adults put the children to bed, who had all crashed from the excitement of the day and the sugar and then they made their way downstairs to have some mulled wine by the fire, and look at the pictures from the day. The adults had taken many pictures that day and Natasha’s favourite one, was of them all in front of the Christmas tree, after they had had lunch, smiling very widely (everyone was pumped full of sugar, and dressed in their best formal outfits), looking like they didn’t have a care in the world.

When she and Riley had come back to the Compound after New Years, the following week, she immediately went to get the picture framed and put it in her office, as a reminder of the best Christmas that she had ever had.


	34. Having people who care

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Secretly, Natasha and the Avengers have been working behind the scenes to allow Riley to attend extra-curricular clubs a few times a week and when Riley finds out, she is incredibly happy!

It was a few weeks after New Year and Riley had settled back into her normal routine at the Avengers Compound and had even started having training sessions with Natasha, Clint, Tony and Wanda with regards to her powers and in helping her to control them. There had of course been a couple of accidents, where Riley had been helped to show her powers at their fullest capacity, to see just how powerful she was, and she had accidentally created a sink hole in the garden of the Compound, caused it to rain so heavily that it flooded the road outside and also had caused winds so fast, that it made Tony’s Ironman suit shoot off in a different direction. 

However, ultimately, the team were all happy with her progress and Riley had started to feel like she could manage her powers a bit better than before. One morning, after another successful training session, whilst she was in the middle of writing an essay for her English lesson in Natasha’s office, she decided to gather up the courage to ask about something that had been on her mind, since she had come to the Compound and since her talk with Lila a month prior. 

‘Natasha?’ The assassin looked up from her laptop and raised a questioning eyebrow.

‘Hmm?’ Riley felt nervous all of a sudden and bit her lip; Natasha of course noticed the change in the child’s demeanour, and she frowned slightly, before closing her laptop and giving Riley her full attention.

‘Do you need some help with your work?’ 

‘Um…no it’s not that. I um…you know…I wondered since I’ve been…improving in my training lessons…um…’ Natasha nodded at her to continue and Riley took a deep breath before saying ‘couldijgotoaproperschoolnow?’ Natasha blinked, trying to translate the sentence and when she did, she gave Riley a sympathetic smile. 

‘Mischief, you know that we’re under strict orders from SHIELD, not to allow you to go into mainstream school or anything in case you have an incident with your powers. We talked about this when you first got here. The only reason you could go to school when you were younger, was because you didn’t have much knowledge that you had these powers, but when you got older, your previous…guardians pulled you out of school because you had started to show signs of being…different to the other children your age. The only decent thing they ever did to be honest.’ 

‘But…but I’m getting better at controlling it! You said I was, earlier today!’ Riley protested and Natasha gave her another sympathetic smile and gestured to the glass of water on the table next to her essay, that was bubbling up and had started to shake. 

‘I did, because you are, but your powers are still unpredictable because of your age and emotions, Mischief. It’ll take a long time before you have full control over them and we can’t take that risk. What happens if you accidentally lose control and really hurt somebody in public? A trip to the shops with me is fine, but seven hours at school every day? I think that would be too much for you.’ Riley blushed in shame and bowed her head, not able to keep the sad expression off her face. Seeing this, Natasha stood up and walked over to the little girl and knelt down next to where she was sitting.

Unbeknownst to Riley, all the Avengers had had a team meeting with Fury, after Natasha had heard her and Lila talk about going to clubs and things, to make friends, just over a month prior. Tony had immediately gone about making a specially designed bracelet for Riley in secret, to control her powers on an hourly basis, when worn, so she would be able to do things that other children could. It wouldn’t last much longer than a few hours at a time, due to her powers being very strong and not being able to be regulated by technology for many hours at a time, but it was enough to allow her to join a couple of clubs a week, if she desired. When Tony had finished making it a few weeks ago, it had taken a while to get in place all the necessary documentation and to be approved by Nick Fury and all the council members of SHIELD; but secretly, a day earlier, it had been finalised and Riley was now allowed to join up to three extra curricular clubs, monitored by SHIELD. 

Natasha was currently finishing reading all the paperwork and signing it, as there was a lot and she had in fact been sent all the documentation that morning and was planning on telling Riley later on. 

Looking at the pouting child in front of her, she reached over and gently touched the snowflake necklace that she’d given Riley for Christmas, and that the girl had worn every day since. 

‘What did I tell you, when I gave you this, hmm?’ Riley looked at Natasha, tears unshed in her eyes.

‘To be…to be proud of who I am…but it’s not fair! I don’t want to be different from other kids! I want to go to school and make friends and do stuff that other kids can! It’s not fair!’ Natasha rubbed her shoulder in a comforting manner and nodded in understanding. 

‘I know, but we have to play with the hand that we’ve been dealt. How about, we make a compromise?’

‘What’s that?’ Riley asked frowning and Natasha smirked, before walking over to her desk and picking up the paperwork and then walking back over to Riley.

‘A compromise, is where you find a solution in the middle. I wasn’t going to tell you until I had finished reading all this and signing everything. However, I overheard your conversation with Lila last month and me, the team and SHIELD, have been working in secret, to enable you to be able to join some clubs. I knew you wouldn’t probably directly ask any of us about clubs and things, as you tend to keep things like this to yourself, about how you’re feeling sometimes and I assume that you would have thought we would have said no.’ Natasha raised an eyebrow and Riley blushed again, nodding. She found herself unable to form a sentence, so she continued to listen to Natasha, who was smirking at the child’s shocked face. 

‘-So, I’m sorry it’s taken so long, but everywhere was closed over Christmas, so you would have had to wait until the New Year to join anything anyway. Tony has made you a special bracelet, that is in his lab, that is only to be worn for a few hours at a time, to enable your powers to be restrained and controlled, so there are no accidents. Unfortunately, you can’t go to a normal school, as your powers are just too strong, which is why we’ve been training you more and more, to see just how powerful you are. However, if you want, you may join up to three extra-curricular clubs, with the rule that you must wear the bracelet at all times. I didn’t want to get your hopes up, which is why I waited to tell you until everything was finalised. Questions?’ Riley continued to look at Natasha in shock, before she suddenly smiled widely and made a noise of excitement, which the assassin smiled at. 

‘Thank you, thank you, thank you!’ Natasha winked at her and handed her the paperwork, which had a few small signatures amongst it in the assassin’s handwriting. Riley’s eyes were drawn to the front page, which read in fancy lettering:

_ Riley Elizabeth Jones, age 11 and 4 months, may hereby enrol in 3 Extra-Curricular sessions per week (of a maximum of 6 hours in total) at either: St Bernards Prep School, Heronby Middle School or North Townole Prep, whilst under the care of Natalia Alianovna Romanova (Natasha Romanoff). _

_ These regulations have been approved by Nicholas Joseph Fury of SHIELD and the Council Members unanimously, as signed below.  _

_ _

There were then a bunch of signatures from what Riley presumed were council members. She turned the page, as Natasha pulled a chair over from her desk and sat down next to the child. 

_ The educational institutions in question have agreed to sign this documentation, to state that they will not photograph nor disclose information of Riley Elizabeth Jones, to any other person/s, unless agreed by SHIELD and or Nicholas Joseph Fury.  _

_ Riley Elizabeth Jones, will agree not to disclose personal information about her real living situation to any person/s, as to protect her identity and safety unless agreed by SHIELD, Natalia Alianovna Romanova (Natasha Romanoff) and or Nicholas Joseph Fury. _

_ _

‘What does this mean?’ Riley pointed to the paper and Natasha glanced at it before replying. 

‘It means that wherever you decide to go for your clubs, no matter how many schools you decide to go to, they will all keep your powers a secret and who you live with and basically just treat you like a normal Kid. You have to do the same though, which means no telling everyone the truth about where you live or who you live with. With regards to this, I need your signature…’ Natasha flicked the page over and Riley frowned at the large amount of writing and looked at Natasha in question, as it mentioned about disguises; she smiled and explained.

‘So, you might be asked about who you live with and you are to tell them that my name is Natalie Rushman, of Stark Industries and we live in a flat in New York, which is actually one of my safe houses. It was one of my older disguises; this way, only a select few know about my real identity and you will be kept safe, whilst living here. Your name will be Riley Elizabeth Rushman, when you are enrolled, just as a precaution, ok?’ Riley nodded and Natasha smiled and handed her a pen, before showing her where to sign.

‘Good, sign here…and here…and then finally on the last page…here. Right, you can have a look at the clubs now, if you want?’ Grinning, Riley nodded and watched as Natasha flicked back through the paperwork and pulled out a few pages that had pictures of activities on it and lots of little lists and descriptions. The girls eyes widened at the amount of clubs that each place offered. 

‘I can pick three?’ Riley confirmed and Natasha nodded, gesturing to the three large lists on the page.

‘Yes, three clubs at two hours maximum each, unless you want to join one club that is four hours and 1 club that is 2 hours, that kind of thing. No longer than two hours per session though, due to the bracelet’s time capacity. I have already scoped out each school and they are all within a 10 mile radius. You may read all the options and decide which clubs you like the sound of. All the clubs have been looked at, by SHIELD and myself. Your age will not be much of an issue in whatever you decide to do, as all classes are small and are tailored to your age group. I will support whatever you decide to do.’ Flicking through the options, Riley looked at each club with a focussed expression and listened to Natasha’s opinion, when she chipped in at times, when Riley seemed confused or uncertain. 

After a good hour, they had narrowed it down to three clubs (one of which that had extended classes, so it was counted as two clubs by itself, due to the amount of hours that it had), which all happened to be at one school that was St Bernards Prep School. Riley had chosen: Drama and Performing Arts – with specialties in improvisation, technical theatre skills and vocal sessions, that ran for a total of 4 hours a week, 2 hours on a Tuesday and Thursday and finally she had picked Gymnastics, which was on a Monday for 2 hours. 

‘Happy with your choices, Kid?’ 

‘Yep!’ Natasha smiled and made to gather the papers up, but Riley stopped her, when she saw Natasha’s familiar handwriting on the back of one of the pages.

‘What’s that for?’ 

‘Just some additional rules that I want agreeing to by Fury. You can read them if you want, they’re about you after all; just some stuff that the big bosses have overlooked.’ Riley tilted her head and started to read Natasha’s familiar neat slanted writing outloud.

_ _

_ Riley shall always be taken to and from all chosen extra-curricular activities by me (Natasha Romanoff) or any member of the Avengers if I am unavailable for whatever reason.  _

_ Also, I will be notified **immediately** of any and all situations that negatively impact or relate to Riley’s mental health and general wellbeing on the telephone number that is given to the institution, no matter the circumstance. Also, I require a weekly update of her academic performance in all clubs.  _

Riley stopped reading and felt a warmth in her stomach at this. She had never had anybody who had gone to this amount of trouble to make her feel safe and wanted. Riley smiled and realised as well that all this planning and thought had just made it clearer to her, that Natasha really did care about her and without thinking, she hugged the assassin. 

‘Thank you.’ The little girl breathed into her ear, hugging her tighter and Natasha smiled fondly and squeezed her back just as tightly; relieved and happy to see how excited Riley was. 

‘You’re welcome. We’re going to go shopping at the weekend for the clothing that you will be expected to wear and then you start on Monday.’ Riley grinned and then stood up. 

‘I’m going to go and tell everyone what I picked!’ Natasha simply nodded, as she looked at the happy expression on her face.

‘Fine, but you need to come back and do the essay after, so I can mark it before my meeting this afternoon, ok?’ Riley nodded quickly and then ran out of the room happily, ignoring Natasha’s shouts behind her of: ‘no running inside!’ 


	35. First Drama session

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley has doubts about her first time at a club, but is rewarded afterwards with a special treat from Natasha

‘Riley if you don’t hurry up, I’m going to leave without you.’ Natasha said, knocking on Riley’s bedroom door. All of a sudden, the door burst open and said child ran out, protesting loudly, her hair looking as if she hadn’t brushed it in years. Natasha bit back a laugh at the girl’s attempts of a braid and she gestured for Riley to turn around so she could sort it out for her, which Riley appreciated.

‘You ready now?’ Natasha asked, finishing tying the double French braid and then she looked at Riley with a raised eyebrow, who nodded sheepishly.

‘Yeah, thanks.’

‘Good, let’s go then.’

***

Natasha pulled up into the school’s car park, turned off the engine and turned to face Riley who was looking at the school in trepidation.

She couldn’t help but feel nervous about her first day attending St Bernards after school programme. Natasha had taken her shopping for all the clothing and things that she would need, such as a bag, snackbox, waterbottle etc and overall, Riley had been very excited to start – she had even gotten to facetime Lila the previous day.

Also, Riley had already met the teachers and had been given a tour a few days prior, but the little girl felt nervous about meeting other children her own age. What if she didn’t make any friends and everyone hated her? What if she was no good at drama or gymnastics – despite having an interest in them? What if her bracelet fell off and she killed everyone?

‘-ley? Kid? You ok?’ Natasha’s voice jolted Riley back to reality. Natasha was looking at her with an unreadable expression.

‘Um…yeah, I’m fine, just thinking.’

‘Penny for your thoughts?’ Riley looked out of the window at the large school infront of them and she subconsciously stroked her bracelet for a second, which of course didn’t go un-noticed by Natasha.

‘I’m just a bit nervous I think.’

‘That’s completely normal and to be honest, I would be surprised if you weren’t.’

‘What if I’m not any good and no-one likes me or my bracelet comes off?’ Natasha watched as Riley then stared determinedly at her lap.

‘Kid, that bracelet is made by Tony Stark, it will not come off, until the allotted time is up – which you will be at home for so don’t worry about that, or until you get home. There are always going to be people that don’t like you, it’s just how it is.’ Riley frowned at this and Natasha hastily backtracked, inwardly swearing at herself for being so blunt.

‘_Shit_…um…what I mean is, that even though there are people who you might not get along with, there will be plenty of people who like you, for you. I’m sure that you will be fine. With regards to ‘not being any good’, I’m assuming you mean with regards to the subject content?’ Riley nodded and Natasha hummed in understanding.

‘You’ve not had a normal upbringing and you haven’t been able to access as many opportunities as other children your age, so I would think that, as long as you try your very best and don’t get into trouble…’ Natasha gave the child a pointed look and Riley blushed, but nodded sheepishly.

‘-then you will be absolutely fine. You’re going to love it Kiddo, I know it.’ Riley nodded again and seemed to relax slightly, as Natasha smiled, then gestured to the building and unbuckled both of their seatbelts.

‘Lets go inside then and get you settled in your class. Remember, your name is Riley Rushman and you are my adopted daugther – do not reveal your real identity to anyone, ok?’ Riley nodded, clutched her small black backpack and got out of the car, then she made her way around the car and stood next to Natasha, as she locked it. Riley then looked up at the assassin, who raised an eyebrow at her in question.

‘…you’re coming back right?’ Natasha frowned in complete confusion.

‘What do you mean? I’m right here.’ Riley rolled her eyes, albeit with less of an attitude than normal and she rephrased her question.

‘I mean that, you’re coming back…when I finish…right? No matter what happens?’ Natasha then realised what Riley was trying to ask her and she gave the little girl a kind smile.

‘Of course I am. I’m not going to dump you here, not anywhere, ever, ok? You know that if I can’t make it for whatever reason, then there will always be someone who will come and pick you up and take you back to the Compound, even if it means Fury himself.’ Riley nodded and then she took Natasha’s offered outstretched hand in her own smaller one and together they walked into the building.

After Natasha had signed Riley in and the little girl had been introduced to her drama group, Natasha took her to one side and knelt down in front of her, before pointing to a small side room.

‘I’m just a phone call away if you need me; your teachers know that if you need me, they can call me whenever you want. You’re going to have so much fun Kiddo. I’ll see you in a bit, ok?’ Riley nodded, as Natasha then raised an eyebrow and opened her arms for a hug.

‘Don’t I even get a hug goodbye?’ Giggling, Riley nodded and all but launched herself into the assassin’s arms, not caring in the slightest if anyone was watching.

‘Be good and remember what we talked about earlier.’ Natasha said, as Riley nodded and huffed impatiently.

‘I know! Can I go now, _mom_?!’ Natasha’s breath caught in her throat as Riley said this – seemingly nonplussed by what she had just said; it was then, that Natasha understood that the little girl was just trying to get into the character of Riley Rushman. Natasha then smiled and gently tweaked her nose.

‘Yes. Have fun Mischief.’ Natasha watched as Riley immediately ran off to join the drama group and she politely waved to the teacher, before walking out of the building and making her way back to the Compound, with an odd feeling in her chest that she couldn’t pinpoint.

Riley turned around and watched Natasha leave; she realised that she didn’t mind calling her ‘mom’ at all and she then shook her head, it was just an act, it was not real. Then, she smiled shyly at the other children and started to get involved in her lesson.

After a while, Natasha found that she couldn’t concentrate on the paperwork that she was meant to be finishing and it was then, that she realised that she was nervous for Riley. She even found herself watching the clock, until it was time to pick her up.

***

When it was pick up time, Natasha was waiting casually by the front gate, watching the children start to leave and greet their parents.

She had politely made light conversation with the parents and found herself feeling comfortable whilst in this disguise as she hadn’t been in the field properly on undercover missions in a while and she realised that she had missed it.

Natasha couldn’t help herself from smirking as she saw Riley run up to her with the biggest smile on her little face. Her braided hair had half fallen out, she was breathless and somehow had already managed to badly scuff her new shoes, which made Natasha smile in amusement and also in slight exasperation.

‘How was it?’

‘Awesome! I made four friends and we played a pretend game and then we did role playing and I got to be the Waitress an…’ Natasha held up her hand gently in an attempt to get Riley to stop talking for a second and to calm down slightly. She was very aware that they were still amongst the parents and children and the last thing that Natasha wanted, was for Riley to accidentally slip up if she told Natasha that she wanted to tell Clint or the other Avengers about the things that she had done that session – which was a big possibility.

‘-hey, hey, take a breath kiddo. Come on, I’m taking you out for ice-cream and you can tell me all about your first session, ok?’ Riley nodded, pretending to be very excited and she followed Natasha back to the car and helped her to get strapped in, before she turned the engine on and drove away from the school.

‘It was so good Natasha! I had the best time ever!’ Natasha smiled over at Riley, as she drove through the streets of New York.

‘I’m glad to hear that Mischief. Do you think that you’ll settle in well with them?’

‘Yep!’ Riley said happily and she then went onto talk about how she had learnt about stage presence and a ton of other techniques, which she had to practice before her next session. Natasha nodded and chipped in at times, before pulling the car to a stop, outside a large café style place, which had Riley frowning in confusion.

‘Where are we? I thought we were going back to the Compound?’ Natasha raised an eyebrow and tilted her head at the little girl.

‘No, I said I was taking you out for ice-cream.’ Riley’s frowned at this and looked at Natasha as if trying to work out if she was tricking her.

‘I thought you were just in character? What about my bracelet?!’

‘Well, yeah, but I figured that you deserve some celebratory icecream for a successful first session. Besides, your bracelet will last another hour or so, so we will be fine.' Natasha replied nonchalantly, shrugging, as Riley’s mouth fell open in surprise at the fact that Natasha wasn't joking at all.

‘You’ll catch flies.’ Natasha chided softly and Riley laughed, before scrambling to get out of the car.

‘Hang on, we’re in a carpark Kid, don’t go running off. Stay where I can see you, whilst I lock the car.’

‘Let’s go! Come on! Come on! Ice-cream!’ She exclaimed and all but jumped out of the car, with Natasha quickly following suit, slightly surprised at the sudden energy that Riley had.

‘I’m coming. Woah, hold your horses! The café isn’t going anywhere!’ Natasha reached out and gently grabbed Riley’s wrist, to prevent the kid from running into the café without her.

Riley giggled and tried to pull Natasha towards the café, which had the assassin shaking her head in both amusement and interest – she rarely had seen Riley like this before… then she realised what was going on, Riley was actually acting like a normal Kid – a Kid who wanted icecream and that made Natasha smile.

Riley carried on pulling Natasha toward the café and Natasha easily let herself be led by the overexcited child, smirking at the excited look on Riley’s face.

In that moment, Riley’s mind had flickered back to when she first went to a playground with Natasha, when she thought that she would never get to have things like this. Riley couldn’t help herself from grinning, a strange warmth flooding through her chest, as she walked inside with Natasha.


	36. Missed You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha goes away on a mission for a couple of weeks and Riley realises just how much she missed her

A month or so passed and things were going very well for the Avengers and for Riley. The little girl had settled in very well to her new clubs and Natasha was finding that she was more attentive in her own schooling sessions and that she seemed happier overall. 

Natasha had started to go out into the field more with Steve and she was managing well to cope with the pressures of her workload and taking care of Riley. Both had managed to co-exist well in her hectic life, however, that all changed one evening, when Riley had finished her gymnastics club and was pulled aside by her teacher, into her office.

‘Hey Riley, I’ve just been informed that Natasha has to stay late at work, so your secondary contact, Mr Barton will be picking you up. I’ll wait with you, until he arrives, ok?’ Riley frowned and then blinked at the fact that Clint was back from his time away with his family and she nodded, pulling her backpack onto her back, as she followed her teacher out into the front entryway. 

Sure enough, less than ten minutes later, a familiar red car pulled up. It had been just over a month since she had seen Clint, but she really had missed seeing him around the Compound. She found herself grinning as he got out of the car and walked over to where she was standing. The teacher smiled as Clint waved and Riley smiled at him. 

He put an arm around Riley and addressed the teacher. ‘Thanks Mrs Davis, I’ll take it from here.’ 

‘Of course. Riley did brilliantly as usual. I was actually thinking that she might be better suited in the 13-15 class. I will talk to Ms Romanoff about it when she’s next available, but maybe you could give her a heads up?’

‘Wow. Way to go munchkin!’ Riley blushed at this and scrunched her face up, as Clint ruffled her hair. ‘-yeah, that’s fine, I’ll let Nat know when she’s finished work. Thanks a lot.’ Mrs Davis nodded and walked back into the school, as Clint took Riley’s bag for her and helped her into the car.

‘Hey squirt. Miss me?’ Riley pretended to think about this and she shook her head, whilst Clint put his hand over his heart and feigned a hurt expression.

‘Damn, you’ve wounded me. I thought we were friends?!’

‘We are if you buy me a Mcdonalds for dinner.’ Riley said innocently, trying not to laugh at the incredulous expression on Clint’s face, as he started the engine.

‘God you even sound like Nat now.’ Riley laughed, as Clint pulled out of the school and started driving through New York.

‘Pretty please? And I did miss you.’

‘Ha I knew it. Just because she’s not home and monitoring your meals, you’re gonna get me hung, drawn and quartered. You know she doesn’t like you eating takeout during the week and also, you know that I can’t say no to those puppy dog eyes.’ Riley smiled at the disapproving, yet amused expression on Clint’s face, before she looked at him seriously.

‘Where is Natasha? I thought she was meant to be back today?’ 

‘She still is. I’m sure that everything is fine, she just rang ahead and said that there was something that needed to be sorted out that was taking longer than was planned. It’s only a level 2 mission, so they should be back really soon. Don’t worry. She said they’ll be back by bedtime.’ Riley nodded, still kind of worried. Natasha and Steve had been gone for almost 2 weeks now. She had had fun with the other Avengers, however, she had had a lot of sleepless nights, being worried about Natasha and she really had missed her. She was also sad that she couldn’t tell Natasha about how she might be moved up classes because she was progressing so well. Clint seemed to notice her suddenly quieten and he pointed at the road ahead.

‘Mcdonalds coming up. What are you in the mood for?’ 

***

An hour or so later, the pair of them could be found in the living room at the Compound, with Tony, Bruce, Wanda and Bucky. All of them were eating Mcdonalds (after Clint had had to go back out for everyone else’s orders) and were in the middle of watching Harry Potter – which Riley was absolutely enamoured with, after Natasha had started reading it to her on a night time. 

‘Stop nicking my fries before I cut your hand off Wilson.’

‘I’m not doing anything!’

‘Wow imagine if you could actually talk to snakes!’

‘Parker can talk to Spiders right?’ 

‘Well I don’t know, I’ve never asked. Wouldn’t surprise me though.’ Riley looked up at this and frowned, trying to remember where she had heard that name from and then she remembered that Natasha had mentioned someone called Parker, who had the same protocol as she did in the Compound.

‘Who’s Parker?’ Tony looked over at Riley and raised an eyebrow.

‘You’ve not met Peter yet? Really? He’s literally always here.’

‘Correction, he’s nearly always in your lab Stark. They probably haven’t bumped into each other yet to be honest, as Riley is in bed before he comes here after patrol. He doesn’t generally come up here much anymore anyway, unless he’s staying the weekend – which hasn’t been for ages because he’s so busy with school.’ Tony nodded at Wanda, and then looked back at Riley.

‘He’s a friend of ours, a bit older than you and he’s crazy smart.’

‘How can he talk to Spiders?’ Riley asked intrigued, as everyone looked at Tony who said casually, ‘oh, he’s Spider-man, but he probably can’t talk to Spiders, we don’t know, we’ve never asked.’ Riley blinked as she processed this information and she looked at Tony with a shy smile.

‘Can I meet him?’

‘Sure Kid, next time he’s here.’ Riley nodded, pleased with the response and went back to watching the movie. 

After Riley had finished her homework (with the help from Wanda, who was very good at keeping her on track – with the promise of teaching her how to use her powers to make her fly); Clint then put Riley to bed. Wanda had usually been doing this, however, Riley preferred Clint as his bedtime stories were a lot funnier and more like Natasha’s.

After Clint had tucked Riley in, he became slightly concerned that Steve and Natasha still hadn’t come back, but he was certain that if anything went wrong, that someone would tell him. So, he made his way downstairs, where the rest of the team were having a movie night. 

Less than an hour later, after Riley had been put to bed, Natasha and Steve walked into the Compound looking very tired and relieved to be back after their mission.

‘They live!’ Tony said loudly, as both of them rolled their eyes in unison.

‘Relax Tony, we were only a bit late. There was a little blip with the technology – turns out that Hydra are using old software and we had to do a little more digging than we thought. It was still a simple recon mission. I messaged Clint about it, said we’d be a bit later than planned.’ Natasha said nonchalantly, as she walked into the kitchen to pour herself a drink, as Steve nodded in agreement and then started to make his way upstairs.

‘I’m going to debrief Fury, I’ll be back later on.’ The others nodded, as Natasha came into the living room and collapsed on the sofa, quirking an eyebrow at the Mcdonalds containers that were still piled up on the coffee table from earlier.

‘I leave for literally less than 2 weeks and you’re all already feeding my Kid junk food? Wanda you were meant to be in-charge of these yahoos?! What happened?’ Wanda shrugged and took a sip of her drink.

‘Sorry Nat, I wanted a milkshake. I did help her finish her homework today though.’ Natasha nodded gratefully and kicked Clint gently, as everyone started watching the film again.

‘Junk food aside – which I will let slip this once; is she alright?’ He nodded and wiggled his eyebrows at her.

‘Yep, she’s had a good 2 weeks. She was a bit quiet earlier, but I think she was just worried that you hadn’t come back yet. Her teacher had a little word with me, after she’d finished gymnastics too by the way.’ 

‘Oh god. She’s only been there less than a month! Please tell me that she isn’t suspended. What did she do?’

‘No! It’s nothing like that. Actually, Mrs Davis is impressed with Riley’s progress and wants to talk to you about moving her up to the Teenage class.’ Natasha blinked in shock and couldn’t help the proud smirk that came on her face; it looked like all those private sessions with Riley helping her to improve in gym, had paid off.

‘That’s…wow that’s awesome. She’s only 11 and they want her in a class with 15 year olds?’ Clint nodded and smiled. 

‘Damn it. I can’t believe I missed that, bet Riley is crushed. Also, did Mrs Davis say when I need to cal…’

‘Natasha?’ A sleepy voice called out from the elevator, which had suddenly dinged, alerting everyone to its arrival. Riley walked out in her unicorn pajamas, clutching Cuddles and rubbing her eyes. Everyone immediately turned to the source of the sound and smiled as the child clumsily ran up to Natasha, clearly exhausted.

‘You’re back!’

‘That, I am Mischief, why are you up?’ Riley yawned and allowed the assassin to pull her onto her lap. She melted into her touch and rested her head in the crook of Natasha’s neck.

‘…couldn’t sleep. Was worried ‘bout you. I missed you.’ There were sounds of cooing from the others, which stopped the moment that Natasha gave them a death glare, as she rubbed Riley’s back, trying to keep the shock off her face - as she had never really had anyone to miss her before.

‘Aw Kid. We only face timed a few days ago! But, I suppose that 13 days is a long time, hmm?’ Riley nodded and sighed in relief at having Natasha back. ‘There was an unexpected issue that made us stay a bit later than we planned on. I’d hoped to be back in time to put you to bed, but things didn’t work out that way. I’m sorry. Come on, I’ll take you back up to bed.’ Riley shook her head, as Natasha made to stand up, trying to stifle a yawn.

‘No, I wanna stay w’th you.’ She mumbled, inhaling the scent of her familiar perfume and playing with a ring on the assassin’s finger. Natasha suppressed a smirk, as she found the whole thing adorable. She ran her fingers through Riley’s curls, ignoring the amused looks from the rest of the team, who were watching the interaction between them fondly.

‘Kiddo, it’s way past your bedtime. You look exhausted. Don’t you want to go to sleep now?’ Riley shrugged and cuddled up closer to Natasha, not caring in the slightest that she was practically clinging to her like an octopus by this point. She wouldn’t admit it to the others, but she had been really worried about Natasha and she realised just how much that she needed her. There was an unspoken conversation between them both in that moment and Natasha hummed in thought, as Riley clutched onto her jacket tighter with her little fingers.

‘How does a hot chocolate and cuddles on the sofa sound? You have lessons to do tomorrow, but I’ve got a feeling that your English teacher will allow you to start a little later than usual.’ Riley smiled into Natasha’s chest and Natasha then stood up, holding her hand out for Riley, which the girl took immediately. She felt Riley relax into her side, watching her make the hot chocolate with sleepy eyes.

‘I heard about what your teacher said today after gymnastics. I’m proud of you Kid. You did good.’ Natasha said in a soft voice, as she poured the mixture out into a pan.

‘M too little to be in the big kids class.’ Riley murmured, as Natasha gently simmered the mixture and stirred it with one hand, whilst the other ran her fingers through the girls hair. She smirked fondly at the typical childish answer and shook her head.

‘Nah. If there’s one thing that I know, it’s that you are capable of a lot of things little miss. You’ll be absolutely fine. Besides, you’re training in private with the Black Widow – nobody else gets to say that.’ Riley yawned again and rubbed her eyes, nodding, as Natasha smirked and started to pour the warm drink into two cups. 

She put a steadying arm around the tired girl’s shoulders and led them back into the living room, balancing two cups in her other hand. Riley immediately clambered onto the sofa and back onto Natasha’s lap, as soon as the assassin sat down, which Natasha smiled fondly at. She passed Riley her mug and pulled a fluffy sofa blanket over the two of them, once again, ignoring the smirks from the rest of the team, as she was still in her Widow outfit – not having had the chance to get changed yet.

After a while, Natasha felt Riley’s head start to grow heavier on her chest and she carefully took the almost empty mug from her and put it on the table. Riley snuggled closer to her and felt her eyes closing against her will, as the assassin carded her fingers through her hair again. 

‘N’tasha?’

‘Hmm?’

‘Where did Cuddles go?’ Natasha furrowed her eyebrows for a second, looking around before Wanda levitated Riley’s bear into the air and gently passed it to Natasha, who smiled gratefully at her. She gently placed the bear under Riley’s arms and the girl sighed in contentment, as Natasha continued running her fingers slowly through her curly hair, as they all watched the movie in a comfortable silence, enjoying each others company. 

‘Is she asleep?’ Clint murmured a little while later, as the movie finished and the others started to stand up and go to bed, bidding each other good night. Natasha nodded, as she felt the even breaths on her neck, from the slumbering child, as she continued running her fingers through her hair. 

‘Mhm.’

‘Want me to carry her up?’ Natasha shook her head and stood up, quietly shushing Riley as she stirred slightly.

‘No, it’s okay, she’s still small enough for me to carry luckily, but thanks.’ Clint nodded and smirked at Natasha, who raised an eyebrow in response. 

‘If I didn’t know any better, I’d say that you’ve grown a bit attached to the Kid.’

‘Well, it’s a good thing that you don’t know better. I don’t get attached to people or things.’ 

‘Yeah, you keep telling yourself that.’ Natasha’s eyes hardened ever so slightly, but she quickly schooled her expression back into her usual neutral one and made her way into the elevator.

‘Good night Clint.’ 

‘Night Tasha.’ Clint walked into the kitchen, watching the elevator doors shut closed with Natasha inside, who was holding Riley protectively against her chest.

Making her way quietly down the corridor and kicking open the child’s bedroom door as quietly as she could, Natasha made her way over and gently placed the little girl on the bed, before she brought her comforter up to her chin and tucked her in, placing Cuddles under her arm. 

She looked at the sleeping child and her lips quirked ever so slightly, as Riley mewled in her sleep and curled up closer to her bear. Natasha ran her fingers through her hair, before she made her way to the door. 

‘God Kid, you’re making me soft.’ 


	37. Thoughts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha fights the negative thoughts in her head and a question from Riley, has her realising just how much she has grown fond of her.

Natasha knew that something was up with Riley as soon as she picked her up from her Drama class. Firstly, Riley didn’t run up to her like she usually did; secondly, she only answered in short replies and thirdly, as soon as they arrived back at the Compound, she quickly excused herself upstairs to her bedroom, without even saying hi to the others.

Not wanting to pry, but also quite concerned about the little girl’s sudden behaviour change – as she was fine that morning, Natasha made her way upstairs and knocked on Riley’s bedroom door.

‘Hey Kiddo, can I come in?’

‘Sure, let me just hide the dead guys body, so you don’t get involved in the crime.’ Natasha’s lips twitched upwards at the child’s joke and she opened the door, to see Riley sat on her bed, playing with the doll that she had gotten at Christmas.

‘Good job at hiding the body.’ Riley gave her a small smile and continued dressing her doll, not meeting the assassin’s eyes.

‘Can I sit?’

‘If you want.’ Natasha perched on the edge of the bed and watched Riley for a few seconds, trying to figure out what was wrong, however, she couldn’t think of anything, apart from obviously, that something had happened in her Drama class.

‘I know I already asked in the car, but are you sure that you don’t wanna tell me what’s bothering you?’ Riley looked at Natasha and frowned, before shaking her head.

‘I’m fine. There’s nothing wrong. ‘M just tired.’ Being a spy and an assassin, meant that Natasha knew that Riley was lying through her teeth; however, what bothered her, is that for some reason, the little girl didn’t want to talk to her. She knew better than anyone, that having someone trying to make you talk, when you didn’t want to, was very frustrating and made things worse, despite the good intentions that they might have.

‘You sure? You know that you can always talk to me about anything, right?’ Riley nodded and hummed in response, not looking at Natasha, who sighed softly, before standing up.

‘Ok. I am going to make a start on some documentation that needs looking at then, if you need me, I’ll be in my office.’ Riley looked up again, as Natasha stood up and made her way to the door, before turning around and giving the child a small smile.

‘I mean it, if you need me, or want to talk about anything or even if you just want some company, I’ll be in my office. I really don’t mind.’ Riley nodded and turned back to playing with her doll, whilst Natasha left, feeling very out of her element once more. Gently attempting to braid her doll’s hair, Riley sighed heavily and looked over towards the door where Natasha had been.

***

Natasha inwardly groaned as there was a knock at her office door. She was absolutely swamped looking over SHIELD documents and trying to arrange another field mission for a few weeks time with Steve and to be honest, she really didn’t want to be disturbed. Besides that, she was very worried about Riley and didn’t know what to do – which was just adding to her ever growing list of reasons why she could never be a proper parent. It was also bothering her, that the rest of the team had started to drop subtle hints about making her temporary guardianship over Riley permanent. Natasha of course had thought about this previously, but she had tried to avoid thinking about the subject matter, as she felt that she couldn’t give Riley everything that she needed.

The plan was always to keep Riley under temporary guardianship until she was 16 and she could join SHIELD and be given a safe house of her own; however, things had changed.

Natasha had become too emotionally involved.

_She knew that she was capable of calming Riley down after tantrums or nightmares, she could make a good mushroom soup when the Kid was ill, she was getting better at cooking meals that weren’t just mac n cheese or pizza and she was very skilled at making castles out of Lego. Natasha was quite good at telling bedtime stories of less violent versions of the missions that she had been on and she always tried to keep the little girl happy and healthy – even when she was out on missions._

_However, despite Riley having been with her for almost 5 months now, Natasha couldn’t help thinking that this had still been on a temporary basis; she had a get out of jail free card all along – by sending Riley to Fury and getting her a new placement, if things were too much. However, after Christmas especially, she couldn’t deny the fact that she had become very attached to the little girl and the thought of sending her away made her feel sick. _

_But the thought of: could she really be able to take care of and nurture a child, kept thundering around her brain. Riley was under her guardianship, sure and she had been able to help her a lot, despite being out of her comfort zone, however, the rest of the Avengers had been chipping into look after her throughout the past 5 months. _

_Natasha was very aware, that if this was to be permanent in the future, that she could have to do more of the heavy lifting by herself – which meant less missions, less paperwork and being a lot more hands on with the child and she didn’t think that she could do that properly. Take care of a child properly._

_She wasn’t made for this, she was made for killing, not for this. _

_She didn’t know how to be that for Riley. _

Natasha was pulled out of her thoughts by the knock on the door increasing in volume and she instantly schooled her face into her neutral one, before she started reading the documents in front of her again and called out for whoever it was to come in. Probably Tony, by the loud knocking, she figured, resisting the temptation to roll her eyes.

‘Look I’m really busy and I already told FRIDAY to tell you all that I’m not coming down to movie night.’

‘Natasha?’ Natasha’s head whipped up quickly at the sound of Riley’s voice and she gave her an apologetic smile.

‘Sorry Mischief, I thought it was Tony or one of the others. What’s up Kiddo?’

‘It’s ok… you said you were really busy. It doesn’t matter.’

‘-no, no, it’s fine, really. I just didn’t want to watch Die Hard again. I’m practically done anyway.’ This was a slight lie however, Natasha was surprised that Riley had decided to take her up on her offer of seeing her and she wanted to give the child 100% of her attention.

‘Um ok.’ Riley awkwardly stood by the door and Natasha sensed that Riley wanted to talk to her about something important, so she stood up and gestured to the sofa in the middle of her office.

‘Do you want a drink or anything?’

‘Soda?’ Natasha raised an eyebrow and glanced at the time.

‘You aren’t allowed soda at this time, you know that.’ Riley huffed and nodded dejectedly as Natasha shook her head in amusement at the child’s antics – glad to see that she was slightly back to her usual cheeky self.

‘How does a hot chocolate sound instead?’

‘Good.’ Natasha nodded and walked into the adjacent small kitchen and busied herself making herself a herbal tea and Riley a hot chocolate, before she brought them both into the other room and sat down on the sofa, next to Riley.

‘So, to what do I owe this visit?’ Natasha watched as Riley bit her lip slightly and took a sip of her drink, before turning to look at Natasha, who raised an eyebrow questioningly.

‘I…um…so at Drama Class today, it went well, like I told you earlier…’ Natasha nodded encouragingly, for Riley to continue, who had started to absentmindedly pick at her fingernail.

‘…and at breaktime, I went to talk to Marnie and um...’ Natasha knew that Riley had grown quite close to a few other children at her classes and in her Drama Class, one of her best friends was a 12 year old girl called Marnie. Instantly thinking of the worst case scenario, Natasha looked at Riley seriously.

‘Did she hurt you?’

‘No! No. Nothing like that. She asked me a question actually.’

‘What did she ask you?’ Riley shrugged and took a deep breath, as if willing herself to open up to Natasha, who stayed silent, giving the child as much time as she needed.

‘She asked what happened to my parents and…and I couldn’t answer her… because I don’t know. So, I wondered… you’re a spy right, so you can find them. Could you find out who they are and… where they are? Please?’ Natasha froze at this, not expecting that, although in hinds sight, it was probably a conversation that she should have prepared herself for at some point – despite the fact that Riley had never once mentioned her birth parents to her. Everyone had a right to know where they came from and Natasha tried to ignore the sudden influx of thoughts that threatened to overpower her.

_What if her parents were dead? Wait. What if they were still alive? What if she wanted to meet them and they ended up hurting her, or worse, what if they took her back?_

As soon as the thoughts were there, the next second, they weren’t and Natasha found herself looking into Riley’s hopeful brown eyes, ignoring the wave of sadness that had washed itself over her and had settled into the pit of her stomach.

‘Of course.’


	38. Anger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley learns what happened to her parents and doesn't handle the news well. Natasha is pushed to breaking point, with Riley's behaviour.

‘For the record, this is what getting attached to the Kid looks like.’ Natasha glared at Tony, although there was no real venom behind it and he held up his hands placatingly and shrugged, turning back to the monitors in his lab. They were both in the process of finding out who and where Riley’s birth parents were, with a sample of her blood. It had taken well over 12 hours so far, for Friday to be able to find much and both of them were becoming impatient, as everything seemed to reach a dead end. 

‘I’m not attached. Everyone has a right to know where they come from. I don’t get emotionally involved with things or people.’

‘Yeah right, keep telling yourself that. You said when you first brought her here, that this was meant to be temporary, but it’s pretty obvious that you’ve grown attached Romanoff.’ Looking down at the paperwork that Fury had given them on Riley and then back up at Tony, she blinked in annoyance as she knew that Tony was right. She had indeed become very attached to Riley and the thought of somebody taking her away, made her insides boil; however, a million thoughts rattled through her head at the fact that she couldn’t be a mother – it had all been taken away from her. Right?

‘I just want what is best for her and right now, she wants to know where she came from. This was and still is temporary, Stark. I am way too busy to deal with a child full time, besides, I’ve only known her for 5 months. I’m not exactly what you would class as motherly material. That was all taken from me a long time ago, in case you’ve forgotten.’ Natasha said in a voice that had an underlying warning, to drop the subject topic. Tony hummed in response and busied himself with the holograms on the screens in front of him, before there was a loud beep and he sighed heavily much to Natasha’s concern.

‘What have you got?’

‘They’re dead, Nat. Both of ‘em.’ Natasha swore under her breath and walked over to join Tony, who was flicking through the documentation that Friday had managed to find. 

‘How?’

‘Drug overdose. 2010. Riley would have been 1, no wonder she’s grown up in care. There’s no remaining family left. Shit. Poor Kid… well, there you go.’ Natasha looked at him, as he handed her the printed copy of the files and the blood sample results.

‘Is it okay with you, if I do a few experiments on this sample of her blood?’

‘Why would you want to do that?’

‘Just to see if I can find anything of use to help her control her powers or understand it more.’

‘Sure. I need to go and talk to the Kid.’ Tony nodded and proceeded to turn back to the holograms, as Natasha walked out of the lab, before looking back at Tony.

‘Thanks for your help Tony.’ 

‘Anytime Agent Romanoff.’ 

***

‘Hey Kid, can I talk to you for a minute?’ Riley looked up from her homework and nodded, frowning at the serious look on Natasha’s face, as she walked into the office and looked at Riley.

‘Whatever it was, I probably didn’t mean to do it.’ Smirking, Natasha shook her head and gestured to the sofa in her office; a piece of paper in her hand.

‘You’re not in trouble. I have some… news about the question you asked me yesterday?’ Riley raised an eyebrow in confusion and then realisation hit and her eyes widened, as she scrambled to sit down on the sofa and looked at Natasha expectantly.

‘You found them? You found my parents?!’ Natasha nodded and handed Riley a piece of paper, which the little girl instantly started reading. As she read further down the page, her eyes saddened and she let out a small sigh, which had Natasha’s heart aching for her. 

‘So, I really am an Orphan.’ It wasn’t a question, but a statement and Natasha nodded, not really knowing what to say. She didn’t do well with emotional stuff and found herself as was usual with Riley, well out of her comfort zone.

There was a large moment of silence, after Riley had finished reading and Natasha found herself talking in a soft voice that she rarely used, which had Riley blinking back tears.

‘I’m so sorry Riley. I really am.’ Natasha watched Riley intently for any reaction, trying to gauge how the child felt about the situation, but she simply stared at her lap, refusing to meet the assassin’s eyes.

‘It’s fine. Not like I ever knew them anyway. They were just druggies who dumped me when I was a baby.’ Natasha reached over and gently rubbed Riley’s shoulder, in what she hoped was a comforting manner; however, to her surprise, Riley shrugged her hand off and shook her head. Natasha quickly retracted her hand and frowned, as Riley spoke up again, her voice laced with anger this time.

‘…everyone always said they were dead – back in the Orphanage, all the mean kids, but I never listened; I always hoped they would come back and save me…they would take me away and I’d be able to have a family again.’ 

‘Riley…’

‘-no, it’s true. They were idiots and didn’t care about me, all they cared about was themselves. I’m so stupid…’

‘Oh, Mischief, that’s not tru…’

‘-it is, because I am stupid - believing that I’d ever get what other kids have. Even stupid Riley Rushman thinks tha… just leave me alone!’ With that, Riley screwed the piece of paper up and threw it across the office, before she stormed out; Natasha watched her leave sadly, wondering about the last thing that Riley had said to her. She thought that she knew what the underlying problem was ... did Riley really see her as more than a temporary guardian? No, of course not... then what did she mean?

She knew that nothing she could say would help the situation much, as she figured that finding out that your parents were drug addicts and died almost a decade ago, was very overwhelming, especially for a young Kid. Sighing, Natasha walked over and picked up the screwed up piece of paper, before she unwrinkled it, then folded it. She put it in her pocket, as she then made her way to find Riley; it wasn’t difficult, as she could hear things being thrown around, a little way down the corridor, which led to Riley’s bedroom.

Natasha knocked on Riley’s bedroom door, which was shut and there was no response, apart from the continuous sounds of things being thrown about, which had Natasha sighing heavily.

‘Riley? I know you’re pretty angry right now and that’s ok, but please don’t shut me out, I just want to help you.’ Natasha then knocked again softly and flinched slightly as something smashed against the door and an angry yell came from the other side of the door.

‘PISS OFF AND LEAVE ME ALONE!’ Raising an eyebrow, Natasha tried the door, to find that it was locked. She looked up to the ceiling, hardening her gaze slightly.

‘Friday?’ There was an audible click and Natasha was able to open Riley’s bedroom door, ducking as a large cushion almost hit her in the face. 

‘I. SAID. GO. AWAY!’ Riley was standing next to her desk, her face flushed and anger laced in her expression. Every word was met with something being thrown off her desk at the opposite wall. 

‘Kid, you need to try and calm down before you hurt yourself. You do not swear at me either, that is your first and only warning.’ Natasha narrowly avoided a heavy electric pencil sharpener from hitting the side of her head and she quickly debated what to do, so as not to aggravate the situation further, but also to stop Riley from throwing things. 

‘WHAT DO YOU CARE?! I HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH YOU! WE AREN’T RELATED, YOU’RE JUST GONNA DUMP ME OR SHIP ME OFF TO ANOTHER FOSTER PLACEMENT LIKE EVERY OTHER PERSON IN MY LIFE HAS!’ 

The child’s voice broke at the end of the sentence and she then attempted to run past Natasha, who easily restrained her and closed the door, before half carrying, half dragging the now screaming child into the middle of her bedroom. Knowing that Riley was just voicing her angry thoughts, Natasha remained silent, knowing also that she wouldn’t be heard over the shouting child. Seeing the bracelet that controlled her powers on the floor, Natasha quickly bent down and picked it up, slipping it onto Riley’s wrist – thankful that the child couldn’t take it off, without an adult’s finger print; good job Tony. The last thing she wanted right now, was a flare up of her powers, when she was so emotionally unstable.

Natasha was reminded of the first time that Riley had shown that she hadn’t got a good hold on her emotions, when she had run away the first time, at the café – the day after they had met. Natasha grimaced as she remembered just how similar the expression had been in the child’s face and she resigned herself to having a full blown temper tantrum on her hands. No, not a tantrum… this was a breakdown; the same as last time.

‘LET GO OF ME! LET GO OF ME RIGHT NOW, NATASHA!’ Gently but firmly pinning the child’s arms to her sides, so she would stop trying to scratch and hit her, Natasha kept quiet and simply held the struggling child, who was now screaming very loudly.

_ ‘Agent Romanoff, Captain Rogers and Ms Maximoff are asking if you require assistance?’  _

Natasha could barely hear Friday over the wailing and screams coming from Riley, but when she managed to make it out, she shook her head.

‘No. I’ve got it handled. Thanks Friday.’ 

‘LEAVE ME ALONE! I DON’T WANT TO TALK TO YOU! GO AWAY!’ Riley screamed, continuing to try and escape. Natasha then noticed that Riley’s hands had started to sprout blue tendrils, despite the bracelet being on and she found herself panicking at how quickly the situation was escalating. She knew that she had to get Riley to calm down, so she racked her brain and decided upon the same technique that she had used the first time, hoping that it would work; by simply holding the child until all the anger had gotten out of her system.

‘I know you don’t want to talk and that’s fine. We’re just going to stand here, until you’re able to calm down and stop screaming.’ Riley screamed again and unfortunately, the assassin was too busy restraining her arms, she failed to see a kick coming; she grunted as Riley’s foot made contact with her knee.

‘Stop kicking me, it won’t work. I am not going to let you go, just so you can potentially hurt yourself.’ Riley just screamed louder and continued to thrash around, trying to get out of Natasha’s grip, but the assassin just raised an eyebrow and silently continued to restrain her. 

‘GO AWAY! YOU’RE NOT MY MOM! I HATE YOU!’ That sentence shouldn’t have hit as hard as it did, but Natasha felt like she had been punched very heavily in the stomach and she felt a lump appear in her throat. Swallowing and taking a deep breath, she continued to restrain Riley, trying not to let whatever Riley was saying, upset her, as the little girl was very upset and probably didn’t mean half of what she was saying – which Natasha was very aware of. Speaking loudly, to be heard over her screams, Natasha cleared her throat and spoke in a firm voice – not a mean voice, just a voice that she only used specifically for meetings, to put her view across. Her no-nonsense Nat voice, as Clint would probably say.

‘I know I’m not your mom, but I am somebody who cares about you very much. I am not letting you be thrown into another placement or be dumped anywhere, as I have said before. You can hate me all you want to, but I am not letting you hurt yourself.’ After hearing this, despite still struggling to get away from Natasha, Riley quietened down somewhat and after a few more minutes, Natasha finally felt the anger leave Riley’s body and the child all but slumped in her grip. Her breathing was shaky and hitching – which suggested that she was on the verge of crying. The blue tendrils in her hands were no longer pulsing and had retreated back into her hands. 

Natasha wanted to hug Riley very badly and tell her that things would be ok, however, she knew that she needed to follow through with the disciplinarian side of things, as despite the news that Riley had had, the behaviour she had shown, was not acceptable, no matter the situation; although Natasha understood why she had done it. She knew that she needed to teach Riley better ways to express her anger and she had a few ideas bobbing around in her head for a later discussion.

‘Ok. Have you finished?’ Natasha saw the brown curly hair bob up and down slightly. She then released Riley and the child moved away from her a few steps, refusing to look at her, as Natasha picked up the desk chair and placed it in the centre of the messy room.

‘Good. I think that we both need a few minutes apart, just to cool off. So, you are going to sit here for 11 minutes to cool off. I will be in my office. You will not leave this room. I will know if you do. If you decide to throw anything else or continue the negative behaviour, I will start the timer again. Do you understand?’ Riley gave a jerky nod of the head and all but slammed herself down on the chair, staring at the blank wall opposite her, as Natasha walked out of the room, into her office and instructed Friday to start the timer.

Natasha put her head in her hands and took a few deep breaths, before looking at the image on her desk of herself and Riley with the Barton’s at Christmas. She promised herself then, that she would do everything in her power, to make Riley happy again. 


	39. Ohana

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley and Natasha have a much needed conversation and Riley realises that she isn't alone after all.

Natasha took a deep breath as the timer pinged, alerting her that the cool down time (also known as time out for Riley), had finished. She then returned to the child’s bedroom and tried not to grimace at the mess everywhere as she opened the door – that could be dealt with later; first of all, she needed to attend to Riley…who was not where she had left her.

Natasha frowned as she saw that the chair was empty and there was no sign of the little girl anywhere in obvious view. Thinking quickly, she then realised that Friday would have informed her if she had left the room, which meant that she was hiding.

‘Riley?’ There was a small almost inaudible sniff that Natasha of course heard, and she carefully walked over to Riley’s bed, before crouching down until she was on her stomach. Sure enough, when she peered under the bed, at the far corner was Riley, tucked in a ball, with silent tears rolling down her cheeks. She made eye contact with Natasha and immediately covered her face with her hands and turned away from her.

Natasha immediately knew why Riley was hiding under her bed – she had been used to living in confined spaces her entire life, so it must have felt safe and comforting to her and instantly she decided against dragging her out.

‘What are you doing under here, hmm?’ Riley sniffled and tucked herself impossibly smaller into a ball, which had Natasha aching to give her a hug even more; she looked so little.

‘I don’t wanna be sent away.’ Natasha raised an eyebrow, as Riley let out a small sob and her breath hitched.

‘You’re not being sent anywhere Kid.’ Riley turned to face Natasha and silent tears ran down her cheeks as she looked at Natasha as if trying to figure out if the assassin was lying or not.

‘But…but I was naughty and…and I threw things and…’

‘-that is true, however that was because you were understandably angry and upset. You are not being sent away anywhere, I promise. How about you come out from under here and we can have a chat?’ Riley sniffled and Natasha waited patiently for a few moments, before the child nodded and crawled out from under the bed.

Riley was sure that Natasha hated her now and she couldn’t meet the assassin’s eyes, as Natasha sat down next to her, leaning against the bedframe and shuffled, so she was facing her. They sat in silence for a moment, until Riley started crying in earnest before Natasha spoke up softly.

‘Riley?’ The little girl let out a large sob and flung herself at Natasha, who caught her easily and held her close as she cried into her neck.

‘I…I’m sorry! I…didn’t m…mean what I…said! I don’t h…hate you! I don’t…I don’t hate you an…and now you ha…hate me! I’m…I’m so sorry!’’ Natasha found her eyes growing watery at the heartbroken tone that Riley was speaking in and she quietly shushed her and held her tighter.

‘I could never hate you Mischief. It’s alright, you’re forgiven. I know you didn’t mean it; you were angry and upset, and we all say things that we don’t mean in the heat of the moment. We just need to get you a bit better at talking about how you’re feeling, instead of acting upon it immediately.’ She felt Riley nod into her neck and she ran her fingers through the child’s hair, as she felt her shirt become wet with Riley’s tears.

‘I’m sorry f…for what I said to…to you.’ Natasha nodded and continued to card her fingers through Riley’s hair, as she started sobbing loudly again.

‘Thank you for your apology. Like I said before, I know that I’m not your mom, but I really do care about you and I couldn’t allow you to potentially hurt yourself.’

‘I know. I’m sorry for getting… so angry.’ Natasha shook her head and tilted Riley’s chin so the child was looking up at her, tears still streaming down her cheeks.

‘Never apologise for allowing yourself to feel emotions. It’s a part of being human and you’ve had to suppress a lot of your emotions for so long. It’ll take some time, but we can find healthier ways for you to express your anger, without kicking and throwing things.’ She looked at Riley with a raised eyebrow and the child blushed sheepishly, then nodded, before she buried her head in the crook of Natasha’s neck.

They sat in silence for a few more moments, with Natasha thinking about how best to try and get Riley to talk to her about some of things that she had said about being an orphan and being alone etc, when Riley once again spoke up softly.

‘…I get scared sometimes…that this will all go away …like a dream…and I’ll wake up in the Orphanage or at my foster family’s house and be…be sad again. Now that I’m really an orphan…I just don’t feel like I belong anywhere. Sometimes I wish that I was really Riley Rushman…’ Riley admitted quietly, and the ‘_I wish you were my real mom’ – _was left unsaid, as Riley couldn’t bring herself to tell Natasha how she really felt about her. Natasha blinked in surprise at the change of conversation and nodded, giving her a kind smile, sensing that there was something else that Riley hadn’t mentioned, but she didn’t want to pry.

‘I’m not going anywhere and neither are you. It’s not stupid to wish for something that you’ve never had, it’s normal and I’m very happy that you trust me enough, to talk to me about things like this. Like I said before, I know I’m not your mom, but I care about you very much. You are not going back to that Orphanage or your previous placement; never ever.’ Riley nodded and wiped a hand across her eyes, as Natasha continued talking.

‘You’ve had a really crappy hand dealt to you so far and to be honest, I would be surprised if you didn’t feel this way – especially after what you’ve just found out. However, me and all the Avengers are here for you and we are trying our best to make this into a happy space for you to live until you’re old enough to make your own decisions about where you live. We’re not moving at all, unless circumstances change dramatically.’ Riley looked at Natasha with a confused expression.

‘Like what?’ Natasha smirked and hummed in thought.

‘Well, I would assume that we would only move if Zombies take over and we have to move to Alaska, or if Tony finally manages to blow the Compound up in one of his science experiments.’ Riley giggled and Natasha smiled, before she pulled Riley close again. Riley sniffled again and allowed Natasha to wipe a few stray tears from her flushed cheeks, before the assassin looked at her seriously.

‘You are a kind, intelligent, funny, sometimes very cheeky and mischievous, talented little girl and you are so much more than your past; never forget that. You might not have a biological family, but you’ve got a very unconventional one with all of us.’ Natasha watched as Riley’s eyes widened and then a smile appeared on her face, which had Natasha smiling too.

‘Come on then, how about we clean up this mess and then have a movie night?’ Riley nodded and accepted Natasha’s hand, as the assassin helped her up.

***

A few hours or so later, after a message about a mandatory team movie night that Natasha demanded that everyone attend, the whole team and Riley could be found in the movie room, eating popcorn and watching Lilo and Stitch happily. Natasha adjusted the fluffy blanket around the two of them, as Riley’s eyes flickered around everyone.

Sam and Clint were in the middle of a furious popcorn throwing war – seeing who could catch the most in their mouths; Bruce was talking animatedly to Tony about the logistics of owning a space craft that was similar to the one in the film. Steve and Bucky were watching the film intently – still having not watched all the Disney films that had been made and Wanda and Vision were cuddled together on a large arm chair, talking quietly about getting a dog.

It was near the end of the film and Riley’s eyes filled with tears as she watched as Stitch spoke about his new found family; her mind travelling back to what Natasha had told her earlier, about the Avengers being her unconventional family.

_‘This is my family, I found it, all on my own. It’s little and broken, but still good. Yeah, still good.’_

Riley then glanced around at everyone again, then at Natasha who gave her a gentle smile and pulled her close. She snuggled closer to Natasha and smiled as she felt the assassin press a light kiss to the top of her head.

Maybe she did belong after all.


	40. Outing at the Park

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint and Natasha take Riley out for a picnic at the park and Natasha faces the doubts in her head about possibly adopting Riley.

‘Okay Lieutenant! Blast off in 3… 2… 1… BLAST OFF!’ Riley shrieked with laughter as Natasha pushed her hard on the swing and she swung a few feet into the air, holding on for dear life.

‘Mission Report Lieutenant! What do you see?’

‘There’s an alien over there, General!’ Riley exclaimed, looking over to where Clint was sat on a picnic bench, eating pizza and he quirked an eyebrow. Riley laughed as he started making alien style noises, whilst pulling a silly face. Natasha smirked and started bringing the swing to a stop.

‘Ah, those are called Clintonians and they are only a level 1 threat, completely harmless but they will eat all the pizza if we don’t stop them!’ Natasha finished in a pretend horrified voice, as she brought the swing to a complete stop, before shaking it suddenly, as Clint started groaning: ‘pizzaaaa…pizzaaa!’

‘Brace for impact Lieutenant! There’s turbulence!’ Riley squealed with laughter for a few moments, until Natasha stopped shaking the swing and turned around, crouching slightly.

‘Quick! Hop on Lieutenant! We’ve got to stop the Clintonian from eating the last of the pizza!’ Riley jumped onto Natasha’s back and giggled as Natasha gave her a piggy back ride to the bench, where Clint had piled all the pizza slices in front of himself.

‘How can we get the pizza back, General?’ Riley whispered worriedly into Natasha’s ear and she smirked before whispering something back and putting the child onto the ground. Riley and Natasha then crept around the picnic bench at opposite sides, whilst Clint pretended not to see them and then they leapt over and started tickling him.

‘ARGH! Noooooo!’ Natasha gently pinned Clint to the table and then turned to Riley and winked at her.

‘Mission success Lieutenant. The pizza has been reclaimed, good work. We will make a commanding officer of you yet.’ Riley cheered as Natasha then grinned and handed her a slice of pizza, before they both sat down on the bench, opposite Clint who was smiling too.

It was the middle of half term and Riley had informed the assassins that she was very bored earlier that day. So, they had cancelled their afternoon training session before Clint flew back to the farm for a few days, and had decided instead to take a picnic to the playground which was down the road, with Riley – who was wearing her bracelet. They were wearing disguises and hadn’t been noticed at all by anyone. They all had already been there quite a while and Riley was having lots of fun; her favourite moment was definitely when Natasha spun Clint so fast on the roundabout that he flew off and into a tree.

‘Slow down Mischief, we’ve got plenty of time before we have to head back.’ Natasha reprimanded softly, as Riley blushed and slowed down eating her second slice of pizza.

‘Sorry mom. I wish I could go to the farm with Clint though!’ Riley mumbled, looking pleadingly at Natasha, who ignored Clint’s subtle smirk and the now familiar warmth in her chest whenever Riley referred to her as ‘mom,’ even though she knew that she was just acting as ‘Riley Rushman’. She then shook her head and finished her peanut butter sandwich.

‘Not this time kiddo, I’m on call for the rest of the week for Fury – as I’m filling in for Clint, we’re going to the farm for Easter, remember? Only a few weeks to go. You can’t go with Clint, as he isn’t your legal temporary guardian. But… I don’t see why you can’t face-time with everyone later on?’ Clint nodded in agreement and Riley perked up at this, smiling as she finished her slice of pizza and her apple juice.

‘Can I go on the roundabout now?!’ Both adults shook their heads immediately and Riley pouted, watching as the adults started cleaning up the remnants of the picnic.

‘I don’t fancy cleaning up sick, so no. Let your lunch go down and then you can play. How about we go and feed the ducks? There’s some bread left.’ Riley tilted her head and thought about this, before nodding in agreement and taking Natasha’s outstretched hand.

A little while later, after feeding the ducks, the trio made their way back to the Compound through a small wood, with Riley skipping ahead happily.

‘Stay where I can see you please!’ Natasha called after the little girl.

‘Ok!’ She then ran a little ways ahead happily, as Clint turned to her and spoke softly.

‘She’s happy.’

‘Yes, I can see that Barton. Observant as usual.’

‘Hilarious. It’s amazing how much she’s changed these past 6 months.’ Natasha nodded and looked at Riley who was now collecting leaves. She looked back at Natasha and Clint and waved; they waved back and smiled at her as she tossed the leaves into the air and ran through them.

‘It’s weird, but I can’t imagine my life if she wasn’t in it now. I feel like I’ve known her for a lot longer than 6 months.’ Clint was smiling and Natasha quirked an eyebrow at him. Riley was completely oblivious to the conversation, as by this point, the assassins were talking quietly in Russian and she was busy running through puddles.

‘What?’

‘Well, there’s nothing stopping this from becoming permanent Tasha. I’ve seen the way you look when she calls you mom.’

‘Don’t start again Clint. We’ve already talked about this, so many times. It’s just an act and Riley knows that. My answer is still the same as the first one hundred times, besides…’ at that moment there was a small thud and both adults turned to look at Riley who had fallen over. Her little face scrunched up, looking at her knee which was all scraped and bloody. Both Clint and Natasha instantly ran over to her and knelt down next to her.

‘Hey, hey. You’re alright _malyska.’ _Natasha grimaced as she looked at Riley’s bloody knee and she quickly pulled out a clean tissue from her pocket, as Clint helped Riley to sit up.

‘I tripped over…and I hurt my knee!’ Her bottom lip wobbled and Natasha worked quickly to avoid a meltdown, carefully dabbing at the injury and shushing Riley as she whimpered.

‘You’re being so brave Mischief, that was a nasty fall, but here, look! My magic tissue is already working its magic! Clint, there’s a first aid kit in my bag, can you get me it please?’ Clint then unzipped the bag that was slung over Natasha’s shoulders and passed her a mini first aid kit, which she opened quickly.

‘Well luckily you don’t need a new knee squirt.’ Riley smiled slightly at Clint’s joke and then whimpered as Natasha gently cleaned the graze with antiseptic wipes, before holding up two boxes.

‘Do you want a Hello kitty plaster or a Tinkerbell plaster, kiddo?’ Riley sniffled and pointed to the Tinkerbell one. Natasha then took one out of the box and quickly applied it over the now clean graze.

‘There we go, all better.’ Without thinking, Natasha placed a kiss over the plastered knee, as she had done with Clint’s children a million times before, whenever they had fallen over or had gotten some kind of injury. She then packed up the first-aid kit and put it in her bag, as Riley smiled softly, allowing Clint to help her to stand up.

‘You were so brave squirt!’ Riley nodded and smiled again as Natasha slung her backpack on and then tweaked her nose playfully.

‘She definitely was.’ Natasha then tilted her head and pretended to think very hard about something. ‘Now, I don’t know about you, but I think that that deserves some ice-cream before we head back. I remember seeing that there was a van near the park entrance.’ Clint nodded in agreement as Riley grinned and took Natasha’s outstretched hand, as the three of them began their walk to get ice-cream.

Clint turned to Natasha and spoke quietly in Russian.

‘You are such a mom, Tasha.’ Natasha rolled her eyes at him, but there was no real venom behind it and she found herself smiling; listening to Riley babble on about what flavour ice-cream she wanted, her fall already forgotten.

‘I’m just prepared for falls and scrapes. Kids fall over all the time, you should know that.’

‘I do know that, but that wasn’t what I meant. I didn’t mean that you’re a mom because you had special plasters at the ready. I’m just saying that it’s pretty obvious that she sees you as her parent now and you’re sure as hell fond of her.’

‘Fine. Maybe I’ve become emotionally attached, but I can’t make this permanent. This…look…I can’t be everything that she needs. I’m not programmed to be someone’s parent 24/7. I’ll just mess it all up and besides, I have no idea what I’m doing right now and you guys are always helping me…’

‘-Tasha.’

‘What?’

‘If Riley is growing up into this amazing kind, funny, talented little girl despite everything that she has been through, then you must be doing something right.’ Natasha didn’t have a comeback for this and Clint raised an eyebrow and grinned at her, as Riley ran ahead of the two of them, back to jumping in puddles.

‘You’re already her mom in everything but blood.’ Natasha blinked and swallowed past a lump in her throat.

‘I was never made for this Clint… I have no idea what I’m doing half the time and my job isn’t exactly the job that a normal parent has. I don’t want to hurt her anymore than she already has been an…’

‘Natasha, that little girl adores you. She knows what your job is and you know that you would never try to hurt her. Besides, no parent really knows what they’re doing, we just make it up as we go along.’ Clint shrugged as Natasha rolled her eyes.

They walked in silence for a few moments, watching Riley point out the ice-cream van in the distance, until Natasha turned to Clint, with a vulnerability that she didn’t often let other people see. All her walls were down and Clint gave her a gentle smile.

‘I have thought about this. So much. I can never be someone’s biological mom and to be honest, I never really thought I would be the maternal type… but with Riley…I just feel so protective over her and the thought of someone taking her away in the future… makes me feel sick. Do you really think I could do this? Be anything more than what the Red Room made me? Be Riley’s… mom?’ He put an arm across her shoulders and pulled her in for a hug, as Riley waved at them both from near the ice-cream van.

‘You already are Tasha. You just need to believe in yourself, like we all do.’

Natasha hummed and then looked over at Riley and waved back, as the little girl grinned at her. All the times that Riley had referred to her as ‘mom’, when they were in their disguises, flooded through her head and Natasha wasn’t that surprised to realise that she wouldn’t mind if Riley called her that… but for real, not just for a disguise. She thought that maybe it was time to look into adoption after all.


	41. Unsaid words

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha takes Riley to McDonalds and finds out something that Riley has been keeping from her.  
A normal bedtime takes an unexpected turn when Riley says something to Natasha for the first time<3

It was a few days after the park outing, and Natasha and Riley could be found sitting in a booth in McDonalds, waiting for their food. Natasha had kindly offered to take the child out for dinner, after her first drama class back, as she seemed a bit down, but as soon as they had arrived, Riley had perked up.

‘…so then me and Marnie made up a pretend story. Mr Lawson was really impressed and he said that I should audition for the school play on Friday!’ Natasha raised her eyebrows and couldn’t help a fond smile from appearing on her face.

‘Wow, good job Kid! What’s the play?’

‘Peter Pan!’ Natasha chuckled and nodded, as Riley grinned, then her face fell slightly.

‘I think I wanna audition but I don’t know who for and I’m a bit nervous…what if I’m not good enough?’ Natasha gave Riley a playful smile, also spotting the waitress coming over with their meals.

‘Your teacher seems to think that you are and I already know that you are. You’ve got this in the bag kid. Also, we both know that the starring role is Tinkerbell.’ Riley giggled and nodded, as the waitress set down their meals. Natasha thanked her and then passed Riley her happy meal, as she opened her own chicken wrap and fries.

Riley happily unwrapped her burger and munched on it eagerly, before she looked at the toy that was in her Happy Meal and burst out laughing. Natasha looked over and she rolled her eyes, as a laugh escaped her too. Riley had a figure of the Black Widow and she was smiling happily at it, before she showed it to Natasha, not thinking of what she was saying as she was talking pretty quickly.

‘Look! Look! I didn’t know that they gave these ones out in Happy Meals! I got you Natas…!’ Quick as a flash, Natasha coughed loudly and the child fell silent, confused as to what was happening. Natasha then quickly looked around and seeing nobody around, she let out a small sigh of relief. Riley then realised what she had said and she bit her lip, her eyes wide. She looked horrified and mouthed a ‘I’m sorry!’. Natasha gave her a kind smile.

‘Sorry about that. Must have swallowed my drink too fast, that was a nasty cough; at least I know not to drink that fast again.’ She winked at Riley who smiled sheepishly and opened the toy, before she then attempted to put it together.

‘Want some help?’ Riley looked up at Natasha who was sipping her drink with an amused expression, watching Riley frown adorably at the instructions.

‘Yes please, the instructions are weird. I can’t put the sticks on.’ She then passed Natasha the toy and the assassin looked at her incredulously.

‘The sticks? You mean the batons?’ Shrugging, Riley ate some of her fries and watched as Natasha scoffed, then quickly put it together and handed it back to the smiling girl.

‘There you go, sticks and all.’ She smirked and finished eating her wrap, as Riley looked at the toy happily.

‘Thanks!’ Natasha then watched fondly as Riley started playing with the figurine and she took out her phone, without thinking.

‘Smile Mischief.’ Riley looked up at the camera and grinned, showing off the figurine in her hand as Natasha smiled and snapped a few pictures. When Riley had finished her meal and her ice cream – managing to track it all over her face; Natasha reached over and absentmindedly gently scrubbed it off with a napkin. Riley stuck her tongue out at her and Natasha paused for a brief moment, seemingly startled by her own gesture, before she finished cleaning up Riley’s face and she stuck her tongue out back, making the girl laugh.

Then, the two of them made their way back to the Compound, as Natasha had a meeting that evening with the team. They walked inside and Natasha turned to Riley.

‘Right, I’ve got to go to this stupid meeting now, I shouldn’t be too long. Have you got any Drama homework to do from today?’ Riley shook her head, suddenly quiet again, which of course didn’t go unnoticed by Natasha.

‘You ok?’

‘Yeah.’

‘You sure? Is there anything that you want to talk to me about?’ Riley shook her head firmly and slung her backpack higher on her shoulders.

‘No. Thanks for taking me out for dinner, I had a good time.’ Natasha looked at her intently for a moment, before she nodded, although still suspicious.

‘Okay then, finish your maths homework, bath and then bed. I’ll be finished in time to tuck you in.’ Riley nodded and then grinned as Natasha ruffled her hair, before she then walked down the hall and towards the conference room.

Riley watched her leave and she then made her way upstairs to hers and Natasha’s floor, before she sat in her bedroom and took out her notebook from under her pillow and her maths book from her desk, from her lessons with Natasha.

Biting her lip, she opened the notebook and sighed heavily, thinking hard, before she put it away and pulled out a leaflet that was crumpled in the bottom of her school bag. She looked at it for a few moments, before she put it away also and then shook her head. Opening her maths book, she put her pen to the paper and started to complete her maths homework, ignoring the sadness that had overcome her.

***

Natasha idly twirled a pen between her fingers; listening as Steve went through mission plans and security details. She looked around at the others and suppressed a smirk. Sam was sneakily playing hangman with Clint, who was in the middle of eating a second box of pizza; the others were all listening, apart from Tony who was half asleep and Bruce was in the middle of sketching out what looked like science equations, under his pile of notes from the meeting.

‘Rogers, not to be rude or anything, but is this going to end…ever?’

‘Tony. It’s only been 43 minutes and you’ve been actively not listening for at least 39 of those minutes.’

‘Sorry I zoned out as soon as you said ‘mission briefing.’ Clint laughed at this and instantly shut up as Steve glared at him and then started talking again.

In all fairness, it was a boring but necessary meeting and even Natasha had to keep herself focussed, as Steve started reading a long exert from his notes on the regulations and restrictions that they all had to follow in the mission.

In the middle of an argument between Rhodey, Wanda, Steve, Tony and Sam over the pros of flying instead of walking into this recon mission, Natasha’s phone vibrated in her pocket and she pulled it out, surprised to see that the number was from Riley’s school.

Natasha opened the message and her eyes widened at what it said, realisation of Riley’s sudden quietness after her Drama class, becoming evident. Clint nudged her gently and she forced a smile on her face, before signing to him _‘we’ll talk later, everything is fine, I just need to talk to the Kid.’_

‘I need to go. Steve, email me the notes would you?’

‘Natasha, we’ve got to go through all this, you can’t just go! This is important.’ Everyone looked up as Natasha stood up and glared at Steve, as if daring him to argue with her.

‘Unfortunately, something has popped up that is more important to me than a recon mission which we have done a hundred times before. I’m sure that you can all survive for the rest of the meeting without my presence. I’ll see you all later.’ With that, she walked quickly out of the room and into the elevator.

‘Friday? Take me up to my floor would you?’

_‘Of course Agent Romanoff.’_

***

‘Hey Mischief, can I come in?’ Riley frowned at the familiar knock at her door and Natasha’s voice and she put down her maths homework.

‘Yeah.’ Natasha opened her bedroom door and walked in, noticing that Riley’s eyes were slightly red.

‘I thought that you were in a meeting for ages yet?’

‘I was, but I got an important message, from your school and I’d like to talk to you about it. Are you ok?’ Riley frowned and nodded, her stomach plummeting, as Natasha sat down on her bed next to her and looked at her intently.

‘Do you have any idea what the message that I received was about, Riley?’ The little girl refused to meet Natasha’s gaze and didn’t answer the question. Natasha then pulled out her phone and showed Riley the text message and the little girl’s bottom lip wobbled.

‘Why didn’t you tell me that your school is hosting a Mother’s Day party next month and your Drama Class is performing?’ Riley sniffled and Natasha sighed softly, opening her arms, as Riley crawled into her embrace and tried to keep the tears at bay.

‘I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you Natasha…please don’t be mad at me.’

‘I’m not mad sweetheart. Do you want to talk about it?’ Riley nodded, sadness tightening in her stomach, as Natasha pushed a stray curl off her forehead and held her closer.

‘I just…I never had anyone to go with to stuff like this before and…and I know you’re not my mom…but you’re Riley Rushman’s mom…and I’m not performing with my class anyway because I don’t want to…and know that you’re my temporary guardian… but I thought you might not want to go and think it’s too weird and…’Natasha quietly shushed her and tilted her chin upwards, looking at her with an sympathetic expression.

‘I completely understand.’

‘You do?’

‘Mhm. I can promise you though, that I don’t find it weird at all. I would love to go with you, if you want me to, even if you aren’t performing.’ Riley looked at Natasha with wide eyes and she nodded, a beam appearing on her face.

‘You want to? Really?’

‘Really, really; besides, who am I to turn down free cake?’ Riley laughed, happy that things weren’t awkward at all and she smiled, as Natasha tweaked her nose.

‘Now, have you finished your maths homework? I know I was back a little early.’

‘Almost, I just have three more equations left to do.’

‘Good girl. I’ll run you a bath whilst you complete them, then we can watch some TV before bed and I’ll mark them. Does that sound like a plan?’ Riley nodded happily and hugged Natasha, who squeezed her back gently and then left the room.

After Riley had had a bath, and her and Natasha had watched multiple episodes of the Power Puff Girls (one of Riley’s favourites), Natasha had read her a story and Riley was struggling to stay awake.

Putting the book on the bedside table, Natasha smiled fondly as Riley shuffled more under the covers to get comfy, whilst hugging Cuddles the bear.

‘All cozy?’ Riley yawned in response, nodding as Natasha chuckled and pressed a kiss to the top of her forehead and then pulled the covers under her chin.

‘Good night Kiddo.’ Natasha then flicked on the nightlight and smiled at Riley, as the little girl hummed in contentment and blinked up at Natasha sleepily.

‘G’night Natasha…I love you.’ Blinking in surprise, Natasha felt her heart fill with warmth at the child’s words, so full of love and adoration. This was the first time that Riley had ever said that to her and Natasha couldn’t help a lump from forming in her throat.

She smiled softly and pressed a kiss to Riley’s forehead, before speaking gently.

‘I love you too, _malyska. _Sweet dreams.’ Riley smiled and succumbed to sleep, as her eyes fluttered closed.

Natasha leant by the bedroom doorway for a long time after Riley had fallen asleep, just simply watching the child’s chest rising and falling rhythmically; as she looked completely peaceful in sleep - her eyelashes barely touching her rosy cheeks and her lips slightly parted as she snored softly.

Riley’s words of 'I love you', echoed in her ears and Natasha smiled.


	42. Easter with the Bartons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha and Riley experience a proper Easter for the first time<3

Easter was one of those holidays – like most of them, where Natasha was quite unfamiliar with what to do; having grown up without partaking in things to do with festivities and general holidays. She knew that kids got hyped up on chocolate eggs brought by an imaginary big bunny, that symbolised rebirth in stories in different religions, but apart from eating a chocolate egg, she had no experience with Easter, let alone the fact of planning Easter for children.

Natasha had taken Riley to the Barton’s for a few days over the Easter holidays and today was Easter. She had been informed by Clint and Laura that they were more than welcome (required actually) to partake in the traditions that they all did every year. Natasha realised that she had never actually been at the Barton’s for Easter before and so this was just as much of a learning curve for her, as it was for Riley, who was currently looking up at her with confusion. The pair had woken up with an alarm – that Laura had demanded they set and had gone downstairs to find the house completely empty, apart from two pink wicker baskets on the kitchen counter, a spare key for the house and a little handwritten note from Laura saying:

_You will find the answers you seek by the point where the barn meets the house. x_

‘But why do I need this basket? What’s it for? Where is everyone?’

‘Riley, I have no idea. There was just a note on the side from Laura, two baskets and the spare key.’

‘So, what do we do exactly Natasha?’ Riley asked, as Natasha handed her one of the little wicker baskets and looked again in confusion at the note. She had immediately rung Clint, seeing that the house was empty, who had just answered her with a ‘we’re all fine, do what the note says and hurry up. It’ll be fun,’ and he promptly then hung up.

‘Well. It clearly means that we need to go to where the barn meets the house, which happens to be the start of the nature trail to the woods and to the edge of the field. So, I guess we go there.’ She shrugged as Riley peered over her arm to look at the note.

‘I don’t understand. I thought that we got chocolate eggs when we woke up, that’s what Clint and Laura said – because I’m not at the Orphanage anymore, so I get some from the Easter Rabbit?’

‘-bunny.’ Natasha gently corrected as Riley nodded and then looked at her expectantly.

‘Don’t look at me Kid, I haven’t got any chocolate eggs. Clint and Laura said that they had everything sorted out. You know you only get them from the Easter Bunny.’ She replied shrugging, although secretly she had of course bought each of the children a chocolate egg, which were hidden in the Quinjet; Clint said that he would put them out for her the previous night, ‘from the Easter Bunny’, but Natasha had of course, not seen any at all in the house and then realisation hit her like a freight train.

Eggs?

Baskets?

A riddle?

Natasha’s face lit up in realisation as she recalled that an Easter Egg hunt was a famous tradition for families on Easter and all the items pointed towards this being the logical conclusion; however, Riley still looked confused and tugged at Natasha’s sleeve.

‘Can we go now then?’ Riley’s question broke through her train of thought and Natasha nodded, walking over to put her shoes on, handing Riley her own smaller ones; which she instantly started putting on.

‘Yes, I think I know what’s going on now. Put your coat on though too please.’

‘What’s happening?!’

‘You’ll find out in a few minutes.’ Natasha replied, wanting it to be a surprise for Riley – if she was right about her suspicions of course. Riley opened her mouth to argue, but seeing a raised eyebrow from Natasha she sighed dramatically and finished buckling her shoes, before she walked over to put her red rain coat on.

‘Ready?’

‘Yep!’

‘Let’s go then.’ Natasha led the way out of the house with the spare key and they both made their way to the start of the trail, wicker baskets in hand.

***

At the end of the path, Natasha spotted the Bartons and another 4 wicker baskets on the floor, 2 green and 2 blue. Riley was completely confused, although she grinned, seeing everyone waving as they approached.

‘About time! We’ve been waiting for hours!’

‘Clint, stop exaggerating, they’re right on time. We timed it perfectly, that’s why we set alarms. Come on over guys! Happy Easter!’ Riley smiled and watched as Laura started handing out the remaining baskets to her children and Clint. Lila immediately ran over to her Aunt and hugged her tightly.

‘Lau, you gonna tell us what’s going on?’ Natasha asked, as she gave Lila a hug back. Laura smiled and gestured around at the field, then at her kids.

‘Say it with me guys! We are having…’

‘-AN EASTER EGG HUNT!’ The Barton’s all said in unison, as Natasha nodded and glared at Clint in exasperation at having to participate in this, who gave her an overly excited expression.

‘…and that’s why we have the baskets. Makes sense; but I thought that this was a tradition for children?’ Natasha said, as Laura started walking round, handing out pieces of paper to everyone.

‘Tasha, Easter is a family holiday – it isn’t just for the kids, we all take part! You and Riley are going to love it, even though me and Cooper will be the winners.’ Natasha walked over and cuffed Clint around the head, as all the children laughed and Laura even grinned.

‘In your dreams Barton.’ Laura then gave each of her children and Clint a basket and clapped her hands.

‘Right I’ve put us all in teams, so there isn’t any disagreements. I will not be involved, as I hid all the eggs, so it would be unfair. Cooper and Nate will be together; Clint and Lila and then Riley and Nat.’

‘Hang on, you’re putting the two least experienced people on the same team?! We have very limited experience in this and I think that is very unfair, Laura.’

‘That is why I am giving you two a head start of two minutes.’ Natasha nodded in agreement, as the others got into their teams; but then she felt Riley tug her sleeve and she looked down at the little girl, who seemed nervous.

‘What’s up?’

‘I still don’t know what’s happening.’ Riley admitted quietly and Natasha frowned in confusion, before she realised what the problem was.

‘Do you not know what an Easter Egg hunt is?’ Riley blushed and shook her head, as Natasha felt like punching herself in the face. She figured that even if Riley had never done an Easter Egg hunt, that she would know what it was…clearly not. At least Natasha knew what an Easter Egg Hunt was though from learning about different cultures. She then nodded and not wanting to make a big deal about it, she spoke up, smiling.

‘Well, is anyone going to tell us the rules? I for one, have never done an Easter Egg hunt before and apart from finding the eggs, I have no idea what I’m doing.’ Laura immediately realised the problem, as Riley bit her lip and looked away, pretending not to be listening, watching as Lila and Cooper started arguing dramatically about being the ‘best hunter ever.’

‘Of course. I was just about to go over the rules.’ Laura said, looking down at her piece of paper and then at the group.

‘Lila, Coop! Come on, quieten down and listen. In all your hands, is a page of riddles. Each correctly solved riddle, will reveal the whereabouts of an Easter Egg. The harder the riddle, the more eggs there will be – as you see that you only have 8 riddles and there are 12 available eggs. Also, some eggs are hidden very well, so you might have to look in unexpected places. Each team has a different coloured basket, and they will be finding the eggs in the same colour. The first team back with all 12 of their coloured eggs, wins! Is everyone ok with that?’ Everyone nodded and Riley had perked up by this point, clutching her basket tightly.

‘Gonna wipe the floor with you Barton.’ Natasha said, smirking as Clint stuck his tongue out at her. Laura shook her head in amusement and pulled out a whistle from her coat pocket.

‘Oh it’s on like Donkey Kong Tasha.’ Laura then turned to Natasha and Riley.

‘You guys will go on the whistle. Then the other teams will follow after two minutes. Ready? Steady…GO!’ The whistle was blown and Natasha and Riley ran off into the wood, papers in hand.

***

‘Okay so, the first riddle is easy and there should be an egg round here. So, there are 7 other riddles and 12 available eggs, I think we should do this systematically and probably devise a good structured plan, what do you think Kid?’ Riley looked at Natasha, in confusion and just shrugged.

‘I’ve never done this before, I don’t think I’ll be any good at it.’ Natasha scoffed and waved her hand dismissively.

‘You’re on my team Kid, and my team always wins. Besides, you’re intelligent. Here, try and work out a few of these other riddles, whilst I scout around for eggs.’ Natasha then smiled, as Riley immediately started reading the paper, her eyebrows knitted together in concentration.

‘Got one!’ Natasha called, as she pulled a small pink egg from behind a bush.

‘Well done, I think I know where the next one is! It says: Sometimes I’m on a post, sometimes I’m on a house, inside me letters you will find the most, but never will you see a mouse. Is it the mailbox? That’s the way we came from right?’ Natasha nodded and grinned.

‘Good job detective. Let’s go! _Shit,_ that’s the whistle for everyone else to start! Quick!’ They both then ran back the way they had come, towards the mailbox by the house.

After around half an hour, the whistle was blown and Natasha and Riley were the winners of the Easter Egg hunt, with Cooper and Nate being very close behind; Clint and Lila were the last ones to finish – which Natasha was happily teasing Clint about.

On the walk back to the house, Riley couldn’t keep the smile off her face about all the Easter eggs they had collected. The Barton children and her were especially happy, when Clint had gotten a large bag of other bigger eggs and chocolate bunnies for everyone from ‘the Easter bunny’, and they had all gotten 2 large eggs each. Riley’s special egg (from Natasha) was a large purple one that came with a cute little keyring of a bunny – which had already been attached to the little girl’s backpack; and the chocolate bunny (from Clint and Laura) had already been eaten!

Later that evening, after all the adults had made the children run a few laps around the field to get rid of their sugar energy, they were all in the living area, relaxing for the night. Clint turned to Natasha and talked quietly in Russian, as Laura busied herself cleaning the kitchen and the children played together.

_‘Tasha?’_

_‘Hmm?’_

_‘Have you thought about maybe taking Riley out for a day around New York or something? Just to get her out of the Compound for a bit?’_ Natasha’s eyes widened and she turned to Clint who held his hands up in a placating gesture.

_‘No. Why would I have thought of that?’ _ She replied sarcastically. 

_'Of course I have done, moron.'_

_‘Well, I just figured that it’s Easter and most families take their kids for a mini break somewhere before they go back to school and stuff. She’s got another week off right?’ _Natasha nodded slowly and looked over at Riley, who was currently making a large: ‘Easter Island’ out of copious amounts of Lego, with the Barton children – which was deemed as apparently only for children and had a large toy dragon in it to guard the chocolate eggs.

_‘I mean, I have thought about maybe a day out somewhere that isn’t the park, but I’m not too sure. Besides, her bracelet only lasts for a few hours at a time, so we’re kind of limited right now with places we could go. Tony said he’s looking into alternatives, but he hasn’t managed to come up with anything yet. Am I even allowed to take her away from the Compound, I’d have to clear it with Fury, right?’ _Clint scoffed and rolled his eyes playfully at her.

_‘It’ll take a quick phone call. You do live in New York right?’_

_‘Obviously.’_

_‘And you have like 15 safe houses around the world, one of which includes New York, right?’_

_’17 actually and yes. Your point is what, Barton?’ _He rolled his eyes dramatically before answering.

‘_So, take her out to the Zoo or something near your safe house and whenever she needs to recharge, so to speak, you can go back to the house. The bracelet only takes two hours between recharges, right? It’s a no brainer Nat.’ _

_‘Wow, maybe you aren’t as stupid as you look.’_

_‘You’re welcome.’ _Natasha quirked an eyebrow but then smiled at him, before looking back over at Riley.

_‘I’ll ring Fury tonight when the Kid is in bed; then I’ll speak to Tony when we get back to the Compound tomorrow, to make sure that it’s okay if she wears her bracelet more than once a day, as long as it re-charges and I’ll talk to her about it, if everything goes to plan.’ _Clint nodded and mouthed _‘mom’_ to her. Natasha shook her head in exasperation at him, but she couldn’t help a small smile from appearing on her face.


	43. Road Trip!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A mini vacation for Riley and Natasha begins!

Natasha sped down the streets of New York, periodically checking on the sleeping girl in her rearview mirror. It was very early, so early that the sun was only just coming up. They had left the farm a day prior and Natasha had immediately seeked to get permission from Fury to take Riley away for a few days (which she was given, as long as they stayed within New York). Due to this, the previous day, she had spent devising three days worth of activities for them both to do – inspired by previous conversations with the little girl.

Despite only being back at the Compound for a day, Natasha had surprised Riley by waking her up before the sun had even risen and had told her that they were going on a mini vacation for a few days on the outskirts of New York – which Riley was absolutely thrilled about. Then they were off; the little girl immediately had fallen back asleep, which Natasha thought was adorable.

Turning the channel on the radio to a different station, Natasha smiled fondly as Riley made little mewling noises in her sleep and snored softly.

She would deny it to anyone, but taking Riley on a trip, just the two of them for a few days, made her feel quite nervous. Of course she adored the little girl, but she was very aware that this trip was all on her – she was in charge of everything, most importantly, she was in charge of a child who essentially was capable of causing pretty severe weather situations, 24/7 for three days, with nobody else’s help. Natasha had of course gotten clearance from Tony that Riley would be completely safe wearing the bracelet that dampened her powers multiple times a day, so long as it was able to recharge for two hours between uses; also, taking other precautions meant that Natasha had brought with her a large range of weapons from her stock – as a just in case of possible attacks, even though they were acting as ‘the Rushmans’ and were dressed in disguises. You could never be too careful.

After a while, the sun had risen and Natasha decided that she was going to make a stop at a café, wanting to make sure that they both got some breakfast, as there was at least another hour or so drive ahead of them. Natasha was thinking about cafés on the route and which one would be the best one to stop at, when a sleepy voice interrupted her train of thought.

‘n’sha?’ Natasha snorted at the sleepy reply and looked in the rear view mirror fondly.

‘Morning Kiddo. Good sleep?’

‘Mhm. I’m still t’red though.’ Riley yawned and rubbed her eyes, squinting as her eyes adjusted to the sunlight, confusion clear on her face as she looked around the car, then at Natasha who quirked an eyebrow and smirked, waiting for the penny to drop. Riley’s eyes widened and she then instantly perked up as she realised where she was.

‘We’re going on a vacation!’

‘Yes, we are.’

‘Are we there yet?!’ Natasha couldn’t hold back a laugh and she shook her head in amusement, as Riley yawned again.

‘Nope, not just yet, sorry Mischief. We are going to go and have breakfast though, sound good?’ Riley nodded eagerly and then she stopped, realising something. Natasha raised an eyebrow in question, worried that she was sick or something.

‘You good?’ Blushing slightly, Riley nodded, squirming slightly in her seat.

‘How long till we get there?’

‘I dunno, maybe like half an hour? There’s this really cool pancake hut that sells syrupy pan…’

‘-I need to go…’ Riley interrupted, blushing slightly, as Natasha frowned in confusion.

‘Go? Go where?’

‘…um…I need the toilet…’ Natasha felt like punching herself in the face; another thing to add to the list of things to remember whilst taking care of a child – remembering to let your kid use the bathroom on long journeys, asleep or not.

‘Shit. I didn’t even think of that…sorry Kiddo. The nearest café is a few minutes away, can you hold it?’ Riley nodded and squeezed her legs together as Natasha sped up slightly, not wanting an accident in her expensive sports car.

‘We can grab some breakfast there too, if I remember rightly, they sell awesome milkshakes.’ Natasha added, trying to distract her, as Riley nodded.

‘Natasha?’

‘Hmm?’

‘I don’t have my bracelet on.’ Riley observed as Natasha nodded.

‘I know, I didn’t think that you needed it on, as recently you’ve been excelling in your private lessons with the team and we are just in a car. However, do you think you need it on for breakfast?’ Riley thought about this for a moment and she shook her head.

‘No, I think I’ll be ok. Could we maybe have it in a bag though for a just in-case?’ Natasha smiled and nodded, as she pulled into the carpark of the café.

‘Of course. We’re here now.’ Riley sighed in relief and unbuckled herself from her car seat, as Natasha opened her door and helped her out of the car; before they both walked quickly inside the café.

Natasha sat in a booth near the back, perusing the menu, as Riley practically ran into the bathroom. After a few minutes, the little girl came back smiling and plonked herself down into the seat opposite Natasha, as the assassin passed her a children’s menu.

‘Better?’

‘Yep! That was close!’

‘Sorry Mischief. This is all pretty new to me too, remembering things like that. I never need to remember stuff like that with the Barton kids, as usually Clint and Laura are there. This trip will be a learning curve for us both I think.’ Natasha explained as Riley nodded, looking at the menu that Natasha handed her.

‘It’s ok.’ After a few moments, Natasha looked over at Riley, who was clearly engrossed in her menu.

‘What would you like to eat?’

‘I’m fine with anything…really. Whatever is cheapest.’ Riley said quietly, as Natasha quirked an eyebrow. She knew that Riley didn’t like asking for things directly, having come from a background where she was meant to be seen and not heard.

‘I didn’t ask you what was cheapest, I asked what you would like to eat. Money is not an issue and I never want you to think that it is. If something is too expensive or I feel that there are alternative options, then I will of course tell you. Now, I’ll ask again, what would you like to eat?’ There was a small moment of silence before Riley spoke up softly.

‘Is it ok if…can I have waffles for breakfast please?’

‘Yes you can, well done for remembering your manners.’ Riley beamed at the praise.

‘What drink would you like?’

‘A milkshake please, the chocolate one.’ Natasha nodded and smiled as a waitress walked up to them, before giving her their order.

***

After a successful breakfast, the duo started the second leg of the car journey and after a while, Natasha quickly realised that letting Riley choose the music was a bad idea.

Natasha didn’t mind Disney at all, but she sighed when ‘Let It Go’ started playing, for what must have been the hundredth time that week. Clint had shown Riley the Disney movie: Frozen and then Frozen II, whilst they stayed at the farm for a few days prior and Riley had absolutely fallen in love with it. Natasha supposed it was because the main character had powers very similar to the little girl and so she wasn’t at all surprised when Riley had learnt all the words to Let It Go, Show Yourself and Into The Unknown, within the past five days, amongst a few of the other ones too.

‘Can you put something else on? Anything else?’ Riley looked up at her in confusion and frowned.

‘But why?’ Looking at the pouty child, Natasha sighed and waved a hand dismissively.

‘Forget it, it’s fine. Put on whatever you want to Mischief.’ Riley grinned and then asked Friday (who of course was installed in the car) to play ‘Love Is An Open Door,’ which had Natasha groaning even more.

‘No.’ She said immediately as Riley looked up at her with big puppy dog eyes.

‘Please?’

‘Absolutely not. Those eyes won’t work on me. I am a trained spy and have been interrogated more times that I care to admit, so no amount of ‘puppy dog eyes’, is going to work on me.’ However, when the lyrics started, one final pleading look from Riley had Natasha sighing heavily, before she nodded, as Riley squealed in delight and the two of them started singing the song, laughing throughout.

After a while, Riley started getting bored and her unlimited amounts of questions were beginning to grate on Natasha’s nerves.

‘Are we there yet?’

‘Not since you asked me 12 seconds ago, no.’

‘I’m bored!’

‘Hi bored, I’m Natasha.’

‘Are we there now? Natasha? How about now?’

‘How about no?’

‘Not funny.’ Natasha smirked as she sped down the streets of New York, occasionally looking over at Riley, who was eagerly looking between the windows and at Natasha, excited to see where they were going.

‘Can I know what we’re doing now? You said you’d tell me when we got closer! This is closer because there aren’t any other cars and we’re just going through country lanes!’

‘Geez Kid, you don’t like surprises do you?’

‘Nope.’

‘Fine. We’re about twenty minutes away now and you’re right, this area is deserted – a perfect place for a safe house. So… I suppose you I can tell you then. You know we’re staying at my safe house for a few days, but I suppose you want to know what the activities are that I have planned? Hmm?’ Riley nodded eagerly.

‘Yes!’ Natasha then began to list off some of the smaller activities that she had planned, smiling as Riley squealed at one of the big surprises.

‘We’re really going to watch a real Broad Way show?! Wow! Which one? Can I have three slices of the big pizzas?!’ Natasha smirked and shook her head in amusement.

‘Nope not telling. You’ll find out tomorrow night. There has to be some element of surprise in the trip and no, you may have one slice, as I’d be a horrible parent letting you eat all that and making you sick before the show…’ Realising what she had just said, Natasha immediately froze and hastily ran through options in her head of what to say next.

‘A…a parent?’ Riley asked timidly, as Natasha shook her head instantly and kept her eyes glued to the road.

‘Well… um not exactly, I meant… loco parentis. Like a teacher. They look after you and you go on school trips but they aren’t…your actual parent, even though sometimes they take on that role.’ Riley visibly deflated at this, but recovered quickly, nodding and smiling as Natasha inwardly felt like punching herself repeatedly.

‘So…where else are we going?’ Riley asked quietly, as Natasha continued to reel off activities that she had planned.

After a while of comfortable silence, apart from the Frozen Soundtrack playing quietly in the background, Natasha steered down a familiar side road and wound down her window as they approached a large black gate.

_‘Voice and Facial recognition required.’ _Riley blinked in surprise as an AI’s voice greeted them; it sounded like Friday but it was a more British accent.

‘Natasha Alianova Romanova. Natasha Romanoff … and guest.’

_‘Please input the code for entry.’ _Natasha reached out the window and typed in a long strand of numbers on the little box next to the speaker, before there was a loud click and the black gate swung open.

_‘Welcome back Agent Romanoff and guest.’_

‘That’s so cool.’ Natasha smirked as Riley stared open mouthed at the large house in front of them.

‘That wasn’t Friday though, who was that?’

‘Tony made me a special AI, that is untraceable to any party that isn’t myself or Stark Industries. He made it British as a joke, as I like crumpets on occasion. This AI is encoded throughout all my safe houses around the world and so provides an extra bit of security, with the facial recognition and such, as an AI would be able to see through disguises or attempted break ins, aswell as the code. Tony did all that, then paid for me to get the house decorated and he added extensions to it and stuff. It’s well hidden and there’s only three people who know where it is, so it’s completely safe. Tony installed multiple security measures around the boundary of the land too – like the fence to get in. Questions?’

‘Can we go inside now?’ Natasha chuckled and nodded, as Riley grinned. Natasha pulled through the gates which locked behind them and then parked in front of the large house.

It looked exquisite and picturesque, yet homey and peaceful all at the same time.

Riley stared at the house in awe, as she got out of the car – which Natasha locked, and then she followed her up to the front door, still gaping at the house.

‘If you keep your mouth open like that, you’ll catch flies.’ Natasha said playfully, as Riley snapped her mouth closed and smiled sheepishly. She smiled at her and slung an arm over her shoulders, pulled a key out of her jacket pocket and opened the front door.

***

Opening the front door, Riley couldn’t hold back the gasp that escaped her mouth. The door opened straight into the living room, where there was a very large sofa in the middle of the room, next to a beautifully intricate fireplace, which made the room feel very homey.

Also, there was a huge flat-screen TV, a big bookcase that was full of a variety of old and new books – aswell as lots of puzzles and games. There was a beautiful rosewood grand piano and a big brown door on the opposite side of the room that was closed. There were many large glass windows, which opened up the living room and there was a great view of the surrounding forest outside.

Riley looked around the room in awe and walked over to one of the windows, to see the forest, she turned back to Natasha, who was leaning on the doorframe casually, smirking at her shocked expression.

‘I take it that you like it then?’ Riley nodded and grinned. Natasha couldn’t help the genuine smile that spread across her face, seeing the little girl finally so relaxed and happy.

‘Good. Let me give you the grand tour and then we can properly start our vacation.’


	44. New York

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The mini vacation to New York goes well, until a phone call changes things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all!  
I hope you enjoy this fan fiction! If anyone would like to donate anything to me, I would greatly appreciate it, all your donations help me to be able to keep spending my time, writing my fanfictions, even a pound/dollar helps!  
I love creating this content for you all<3
> 
> My PayPal is: https://paypal.me/SClark753?locale.x=en_GB

To say that Riley was amazed was an understatement. Even though she had lived in New York since she was born and had even lived on the streets for a month, she hadn’t actually been to any of the tourist attractions and main areas of New York. Natasha had planned a careful schedule that she kept running by Riley, to make sure that the little girl agreed to it all and if she had any other ideas; so far since they had arrived at the safe house and then ventured into the city, things were going really well.

Natasha had taken well over a hundred pictures of their trip so far (although she would never admit it) and overall, things were going much smoothly than she had anticipated.

‘Mom! Mom! Look!’ Natasha immediately looked to where Riley was pointing excitedly and she chuckled at the child’s wide eyes, which were drawn to a very large Disney Store. They were both in disguise of course and were currently walking around Times Square, after they had eaten lunch out and had watched a few street performers.

‘Can we go in?! Please?!’ Nodding, Natasha smirked as Riley squealed and all but dragged her to the large store. They didn’t live near any big mainstream stores like this and Natasha was very aware that this was the first time that Riley would be exposed to big stores that weren’t their local supermarket. She was happy enough to go inside, however, she was already making escape routes in her head and counting the exits, just in-case something happened. Riley immediately let go of Natasha’s hand, which instantly grabbed onto the back of her hoodie instead.

‘Hey, no running off ok? Stay where I can see you.’ Riley groaned, but stopped whining at the firm look from Natasha and she nodded defeatedly.

‘Ok, ok, can I go now?!’

‘Yes, you may.’ Riley grinned and made a bee line for the Frozen section. Natasha kept her eyes fixed on the little girl, but she kept sweeping her eyes the crowded store for any suspicious looking people.

Walking over to Riley, she couldn’t help a large smile from forming as the girl spun around, holding up Elsa’s dress in front of her from the latest film. Snapping a quick photo and sending it to Clint, Natasha cleared her throat and pursed her lips, looking thoughtful; Riley turned to her with a confused expression, as she put the dress back.

‘Well…it would be a shame if we didn’t get that for you, it looks pretty awesome on you.’ Riley’s eyes lit up and she beamed at Natasha.

‘Really?!’

‘Mhm. But, you can’t just buy a dress without a tiara and shoes, right?’

After over an hour, Natasha and Riley walked out of the Disney Store with three new Princess dresses (Elsa’s, Rapunzel’s and Ariel’s), tiaras, shoes, stuffed animals and even new bath toys. Riley was absolutely thrilled, and Natasha grinned at the happy expression on her face, as she clutched one of her new teddies (Stitch) which she refused to put in the bag. Natasha didn’t usually like spending so much money on material things, however, she figured that Riley deserved to be treated once in a while.

‘So, let’s head back to the house, dump all this and watch a movie? Then, how about we go and have dinner out, if you’re feeling up to it?’ Riley smiled and nodded happily as they made their way to where Natasha had parked the car.

***

Riley quickly realised that wearing the bracelet constantly made her feel very tired during the day and of course, Natasha noticed this. After a meltdown from the little girl on the morning of the second day, because she was overtired, Natasha made the executive decision that they were going to relax for the entire day at the safe house, to give Riley chance to recharge and then go into the city to see the show in the evening.

At first, Riley had been very upset at herself for this, however, after a talk with Natasha and after watching a few movies, she had perked up but still couldn’t sleep much. They then played a lot of board games and Riley quickly realised that she adored monopoly, although Natasha always seemed to win. The rest of the day did go by quite quickly and soon enough, they were sitting on a bench outside Broadway, all dressed up, eating a large slice of pizza each, to Riley’s delight.

‘How’s the pizza?’

‘’ish go’d!’ Natasha chuckled and took a bite of her own slice, watching the hustle and bustle of New York, as it started to get dark. When they had finished, Natasha took Riley’s hand and they both walked inside the building, to collect their tickets.

‘So, what are we going to see?’ Riley asked, trying and failing to look over Natasha’s arm to see what show was printed on the tickets.

‘You’ll have to wait and see.’

‘Mommmm!’ Natasha’s heart leapt, like it always did whenever Riley called her that whilst they were in disguise and she looked at the little girl and smirked.

‘Rileyyyy!’ Riley giggled and followed Natasha up the stairs to their seats. Riley’s mouth fell open when she saw how close they were to the stage and how good their seats were. They both took their jackets off and sat down, before Natasha spotted someone selling what looked like a book, near the exit to the theatre.

‘Kid, will you be alright for a few minutes, if I go and buy something?’ Riley bit her lip and looked around at everyone sitting down and talking loudly, waiting for the show to start. This would be the first time that she would be left by herself unattended for a few minutes and a part of her was nervous, but at the same time she wanted to show Natasha that she was brave; she nodded.

‘Yep.’

‘Good girl. I’ll be right over there.’ Natasha gestured to the man selling what appeared to be a book and Riley nodded, as Natasha smiled and walked over to him. Riley strained her neck to see Natasha and pouted as she realised that she couldn’t see much over the adults and other children who were standing up in the rows behind her. Riley was surprised that Natasha had gotten them such good seats, near the front of the stage and she was excited to see what the show was – having never been to anything like this before.

Natasha true to her word, came back a few minutes later with a brown paper bag and handed it to a confused Riley.

‘Open it. I got it for you.’ Turning the bag over in her hands and pulling out a thin book, Riley gasped with delight when she saw the front page.

‘We’re seeing Frozen?!’ Natasha nodded with a fond smile and gestured to the book.

‘Yep. It was between this or Matilda and I figured after the whole Frozen thing at the Barton’s, that you would prefer th…_oof_!’ Natasha then grunted, as Riley all but leapt into her arms and gave her the biggest hug. She hugged her back and placed a small kiss on the top of her head.

‘I love it! Thank you so much!’ Smiling, Natasha hugged Riley tighter.

‘You’re welcome Mischief. This is called a programme and it tells you what the play is about, who is in it and things like that.’ Natasha opened the book and showed Riley what she meant and the little girl sat back down and read it excitedly. After a few more minutes, Natasha nudged her as the lights went down. Riley’s gaze was immediately drawn to the stage and she gasped in awe as the show began.

This was a new experience for Natasha. In her life, disguises of course were missions usually and the only time she had ever watched a Broadway show, was in one of these missions, whilst she was infiltrating somebody on a ‘date’. She was pleasantly surprised to find that she enjoyed the show and she loved watching Riley’s reactions to it. In the interval, she bought them both icecream and listened to Riley’s recap of the previous scenes. Near the end, she had to prevent herself from cooing when in the second half, Riley begun to yawn.

Not wanting her to miss the ending, Natasha nudged her and started subtly pointing to things on the stage, in an effort to keep her awake.

To her relief, Riley then caught a second wind, or by this point, probably a tenth and she managed to make it through to the end, clapping loudly when it finished.

When the encore had finished and they had made their way out of the theatre, Riley was babbling nonstop about the show and Natasha listened, as they walked back to the car.

***

On the way back to the safe house, Riley turned to Natasha, blinking sleepily and the assassin quirked an eyebrow in question.

‘Thank you so much… I had so much fun today.’

‘You’re very welcome. I had fun today too. What was your favourite part?’ Riley yawned and her eyes furrowed as she thought.

‘The…the bit with Olaf at the… the end.’ Riley said as she kept yawning and Natasha smirked, realising that it was very late by this point and she nodded.

‘Good choice. So, I was thinking for tomorrow, we could go to the Statue of Liberty in the morning, then the Empire State in the afterno…’ She turned to look at Riley and rolled her eyes fondly as she realised that the little girl had fallen asleep.

Turning the Frozen soundtrack off and putting soft piano music on, Natasha continued driving, until her phone started ringing.

‘Friday? Put it through on quiet.’

_‘Hey, Tasha?’_

‘What do you want Barton? Everything going to shit without me there? It’s only been two days.’ Natasha said playfully, although she was also concerned why Clint was calling so late.

_‘Um no, well…’_

‘Clint, what’s going on?’ Natasha pulled into the drive of the safe house and checked to see if Riley was still asleep, which she was, before she stepped out of the car and transferred the audio from the car to her phone.

_‘I found her.’ _Natasha felt her heart drop into her stomach and she swallowed past a lump in her throat, hoping that she was wrong about what Clint was saying.

‘Found who?’

_‘Yelena.’_

‘Where? Are you sure?’

_‘She’s in Berlin, but I’m not too sure where. Traffic cameras confirmed her face earlier today. I’ve been running forensics for hours and they finally confirmed it; the shooting in Berlin last week? That must have been her handiwork. Even you said it was familiar. Are you going to tell Fury?’_

‘No. SHIELD’S interference will make things worse, for everyone. I have to go to her on my own.’

_‘Tasha, she shot at you last time you saw her! She could kill you!’_

‘Pft, not a chance. She only shot last time, because we were shooting already, I acted too impulsively. Look…I know her…knew her, if anyone can get through to her, if she will talk to anyone, it’s me, but only if I go alone, without SHIELD’s squad and without a hundred guns aimed at her head. Since that mission before Christmas, we’ve been looking for her for months and we’ve finally got something, we need to act now. Who knows how long she’ll be there for.’

_‘I don’t know where she is though Natasha, only that she’s in central Berlin somewhere. You’ll be going in blind. What happens if she’s not alone?’_

‘You think she’s working with people from the Red Room, you mean?’

_‘Yes.’_

‘No. I burnt it to the ground a few years ago, on my little hiatus from the team, when I went back to Russia to find my parents. Yelena works alone, always has done. I thought she was dead, but then I saw her at that Hydra base before Christmas and...’ Natasha glanced over at Riley and sighed, feeling tears prickle the corner of her eyes. She blinked them away angrily.

_‘Tasha. I think we should tell the team, they could help. We never talked about what we would do if we found her an-‘ _

‘No. It has to be me. Anyway, I think I have a hunch where she is. Can you get here and watch Riley?’

_‘Yeah of course. I can be there in a few hours.’ _

‘Thanks.’

_‘Tasha?’_

‘Hmm?’

_‘Are you sure you’re up to this?’_

‘I know her…well knew her. If anyone can get through to her, it’s me.’

_‘Ok. I’ll set up a frequency from the safe house and I can monitor your movements and audios through that.’_

‘Clint-‘

_‘No Natasha, this isn’t up for discussion. It’s the least I can do.’_

‘Fine, you worry too much though.’

_‘Just when you go hunting for dangerous super assassins. Have you got your weapons and uniform?’_

‘Barton, who do you think I am? Obviously I’ve brought it all.’

_‘Sure, why wouldn’t you bring dangerous weapons and your Avengers uniform to a mini vacation in one of the busiest cities in the world with an 11 year old? Stupid me.’_

‘Hilarious. See you in a few hours.’ Natasha carefully reached into the car and gently carried Riley into the house, her phone balanced by her ear.

_‘Go and buy a plane ticket and see you soon.’_

‘On it. Oh, and Clint?’

_‘Yeah?’_

‘Thanks.’

_‘Of course. See ya soon Tasha.’ _Natasha hung up, gently opening the guest room and putting Riley down on the bed, before taking her boots off and covering her over with the comforter.

So far, Natasha had managed to keep her business life and personal life quite separate from Riley, however, this all seemed to be changing now. She hated that she had to choose like this and she looked at the slumbering child, feeling her heart ache with guilt. She felt terrible for having to cut the trip short, but she knew that she had to find Yelena, because she was the only one who could.


	45. Berlin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley is concerned as to why Clint is in the safe house and Natasha confronts Yelena in Berlin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all!  
I hope you enjoy this fan fiction! If anyone would like to donate anything to me, I would greatly appreciate it, all your donations help me to be able to keep spending my time, writing my fanfictions, even a pound/dollar helps!  
I love creating this content for you all<3
> 
> My PayPal is: https://paypal.me/SClark753?locale.x=en_GB

Riley whimpered and jolted awake, her heart beating from her nightmare. She didn’t have them nightly anymore and they weren’t too bad usually, but sometimes she still got scared of old memories of her foster father. Blinking, she squinted around the guest room and realised where she was. She figured it was still night-time as the room was dark and she decided to get a glass of water; so she quietly put on her slippers, grabbed Cuddles the bear and peered out into the hallway.

She was very surprised to hear voices, one of which was unexpected. Clint. Why was Clint here? Quietly walking towards the kitchen, Riley hid behind the door and listened to the voices, wondering if everything was ok, as both the assassin’s sounded quite agitated. She wanted a drink, but didn’t want to interrupt anything, whilst she was debating this, the conversation continued inside the kitchen.

‘-be fine.’

‘-no, I’m not happy with this.’ Riley frowned, still half asleep and her eyes widened as the floorboard creaked slightly under her feet.

‘-isn’t your call…hang on.’ The door opened and Natasha looked out, her eyes immediately fixed on Riley, who looked like a deer in headlights.

‘Hey, what are you doing up _malyska? _You’ve only been asleep a few hours.’ Riley bit her lip and shrugged, as understanding dawned on the assassin’s face and she knelt down and opened her arms for Riley, who instantly fell into her embrace.

‘…um…I wanted a glass of water, but I…I heard voices.’ Natasha nodded and brushed a curl off the child’s face, before tilting her chin up. She took note of the slight sheen of sweat on Riley’s brow and her slightly reddened eyes.

‘Is that the whole reason you woke up?’ Riley sighed and shook her head, whimpering slightly, as flashbacks from her dream flickered across her mind.

‘Nightmare?’ Nodding, Riley hugged Natasha tighter, who noticed of course and she held her closer, planting a small kiss on the top of her head.

‘You want to talk about it?’

‘No.’ Came the muffled reply, as by this point, her face was buried in Natasha’s shoulder and the assassin nodded, before standing up, with Riley clinging to her. She carried her into the kitchen and turned the tap on, before offering the little girl a glass of water.

‘Hey squirt.’ Riley lifted her head from Natasha’s shoulder to take the glass and she saw Clint sitting at the kitchen counter with a bottle of wine, perusing a pile of documents. It was then that Riley realised that Natasha was fully dressed and that there were a variety of guns and what looked like blueprints on the table.

‘…hi…um…what’s going on?’ Clint gave her a sad smile, as Natasha sat down with Riley on her lap, who was sipping her water, looking at the assassin’s expectantly.

‘An important mission has come up, one that only I can do and it can’t wait. I’m so sorry Riley. I was going to wake you up soon to tell you, but I have to leave in the next hour to catch a flight. Clint is here to look after you, until I come back.’ Riley’s eyes filled with tears again and her bottom lip wobbled.

‘But…but what about our trip? We haven’t finished it yet! You…you promised we would go to the Statue of Liberty and the Zoo… you can’t just leave! Was it something…something that I did? I don’t want you to go!’ Natasha swore that her heart broke right then and there at the heartbroken look on Riley’s face and she quickly started to comfort the upset child.

‘No, no. It was nothing at all that you did. I’m really sorry and if it was anything else then I wouldn’t go, but I’m the only one who can do this mission.’

‘…but that means…you’ll be on your own? What if you get hurt and…and what if you…if you…’ A sob overtook the little girl and she tucked her head into the crook of Natasha’s neck, as the assassin rubbed her back in a comforting manner, knowing what Riley meant.

‘I’m going to have Clint working here remotely in case I need any help. However, this mission isn’t necessarily a dangerous one, it’s more of a finding someone and talking to them type of mission. I’m going to be fine. I need you to be a big girl for me, ok?’ Riley nodded, wiping a few stray tears off her face tiredly, as Natasha gave her a hug, relieved that she was accepting of the situation.

‘We’re gonna have loads of fun squirt, don’t you worry. I brought lots of tasty treats and games for us to play.’ Clint said kindly, as Riley looked over at him and nodded, smiling slightly. He pulled a funny face at her and she giggled softly, before a yawn overtook her.

‘You ready to try and go back to sleep Mischief?’ Natasha asked gently as Riley nodded and she put her head on her shoulder again, realising just how tired she was. Natasha then muttered something in Russian to Clint, who nodded and poured himself another glass of wine, before pouring over the documents in front of him again, as Natasha stood up, holding Riley. Clint gave Riley a friendly smile and looked at her seriously.

‘Night Kiddo. If you need me in the night, don’t hesitate to come and find me ok? I’ll either be in here or the living room.’ Riley yawned again and nodded, as Natasha carried her out of the kitchen and back into her room.

Natasha tucked Riley back into bed and placed a kiss on her forehead, smiling fondly as she yawned and hugged Cuddles close to her chest.

‘Natasha? B…be careful ok?’

‘Of course. I will be back as soon as I can, no more than two days, tops. Clint will be here for you and if you need me at any point, he has a direct access line to me, so you can talk to me if you really really need to.’ Riley nodded and reached her arms out for another hug from Natasha who smiled and embraced her.

‘Sweet dreams _malyska _and remember, nightmares aren’t real. I’ll see you really soon. I love you.’ Riley smiled as Natasha placed a kiss on her forehead and pulled the comforter tighter around her.

‘I love you too.’ Natasha smiled back and turned off the light, before pulling the door ajar and walking back into the kitchen.

‘She ok?’

‘Yeah, she’s a tough cookie.’

‘Just like her mom.’ Natasha glared at him, from her spot analysing the array of guns on the table.

‘Clint.’

‘Sorry, sorry.’ He held his hands up in a placating gesture and Natasha smirked, before pointing to the blueprints.

‘Let’s go through the plan again.’

***

If she had time, Natasha would have quite liked to have spent some time in Berlin, just looking around; however, she was currently outside what looked to be an old abandoned building, in the middle of nowhere – but she knew better. After meticulously checking the traffic footage and gaining access to blueprints of the city, Natasha and Clint had narrowed her location down to a radius of three miles, which just so happened to house an old familiar site that Natasha remembered vaguely. They had been analysing the blueprints, until Natasha had had to catch a flight and she was confident that she knew her way around inside.

This was an old safe house of the Red Room – known only by Madame B and the two top students of the Red Room, who of course, were her and Yelena. They had never needed to use it, however, Natasha figured that as the safe house was only a ten minute drive into the centre of the city, that it was likely that this was where Yelena was staying.

‘I’m approaching the house. Door has been kicked in, the only way in looks to be up the fire-escape and through the top left window.’

_‘Ok. Take it slow.’ _Gun poised in front of her, Natasha carefully begun the ascent up the wall of the old building and peered into the house, it looked deserted and Natasha would have believed this, had it not been for a steaming mug of what smelt like coffee, that was visible a little ways into the room.

‘She’s here. I’m going in.’ Natasha muttered into her comm.

_‘Copy that.’ _She then carefully climbed in through the window and quickly looked around the room, which was an old bedroom. Taking in her surroundings and the still warm mug off coffee, she moved stealthily around the walls, using them for cover, as she made her way through the room and into the hallway.

Slowing her breathing down and listening carefully, until the only thing she could hear was her own heartbeat, Natasha moved slowly and carefully through each room, until she found herself in the kitchen and she heard it. A small shuffle to her left and the click of the safety on the gun being removed.

Instantly, Natasha flipped to her right and avoided a bullet right where her left shoulder had been. A familiar figure appeared from behind the door on the opposite side of the room and both of them made eye contact for a split second, before the figure skidded across the kitchen and knocked the gun from Natasha’s hands; Natasha reacted quickly and also knocked the gun from her assailants hand.

Natasha then fell into her signature Widow fighting pose, throwing a knife at the figure, who dodged it a second too late and it sliced slightly against her arm, before it planted itself into the wall. Yelena touched the blood on her arm and smirked, before glaring at Natasha, who shrugged and tried to keep her heart rate steady. This was seriously not how she had wanted this to go.

‘You have gotten careless, Natalia.’

‘You attacked first and you just got lucky. So, we gonna talk like grown ups?’ Natasha and Yelena kept eye contact, both in a fighting pose, guns forgotten on the other side of the room.

‘Is that what we are?’ Yelena then quickly ran at Natasha, throwing a punch at her face, which was blocked by Natasha, who jumped over her and landed a swift kick to her midrift, causing Yelena to huff in annoyance and stumble slightly.

Natasha approached her, as she jumped back up and both women began to fight, mirroring and anticipating each others movements in perfect synchrony. This lasted for a few minutes, until Natasha tried to end it and sweep out Yelena’s legs from under her, however, she had been expecting this and jumped up, landing a kick to Natasha’s chest, so hard that Natasha went flying into the door, landing in a heap on the floor. She recovered quickly and jumped back up; Yelena took the chance to try and punch Natasha in the face, however, anticipating this, Natasha jumped out of the way and landed a hard roundhouse kick to Yelena’s stomach, causing the younger assassin to fall to the floor, grunting slightly.

Natasha took the opportunity and she immediately pinned Yelena’s arms to her side and sat on her stomach, a knife held lightly to her throat.

‘Had enough?’ Yelena’s eyes narrowed and she avoided the question.

‘What you doing here, Natalia?’ The broken English and the strong Russian accent made Natasha feel a pang of protectiveness towards her, Yelena was exactly like she remembered her to be – albeit a bit older now.

‘I could ask you the same question. You might want to put some pressure on that.’ Natasha replied, gesturing to Yelena’s bleeding arm, as she stood up. The younger woman followed suit and walked over to a drawer by the oven, pulling out a tea towel, which she wrapped around her arm, before she put her forgotten gun back in its holster. Yelena then opened a cabinet and took out two glasses and a bottle of Russian vodka, she placed them on the kitchen table and sat down, pouring the translucent liquid into the glasses. She offered Natasha a glass and she took it, sitting down opposite her.

‘So, why you here?’

‘Are we alone? Are we going to be joined by anyone?’ Whatever Yelena had been expecting, that wasn’t it. Surprise flickered across her face for a second, before she schooled it into a neutral look and downed her vodka.

‘Yes, we alone.’ Natasha frowned and took a sip of her drink, debating what to say, as Yelena’s eyes narrowed and her fingers ghosted over her gun holster momentarily.

‘What you hiding, Natalia?’ There was an edge to Yelena’s voice and she looked at Natasha’s right ear, at the comm, which was hidden by her hair.

‘Just my friend, making sure I’m ok. Nobody is coming. It’s just us.’

‘No. Show me, turn off.’ Natasha sighed and pulled the comm out of her ear and turned it off, Yelena smiled slightly and nodded.

‘Now we talk properly, Tasha.’


	46. Building Bridges

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha and Yelena have a much needed conversation and they both try to make amends.

‘Why you really here Natalia?’

‘To talk and it’s Natasha now, but you already knew that.’ Yelena smirked and nodded. Natasha rolled her eyes before continuing.

‘I looked for you last year after I burnt the Red Room down; I looked for you for so long, but I couldn’t find any leads that said where you had gone. I thought you were dead. Where have you been and why didn’t you contact me, like you said you would?’ Yelena’s facial expression faltered for a second and then she shrugged.

‘No, I alive. I follow your lead. I leave Red Room after graduation and try to find myself – like you did. I not want that life anymore, so I defected, but some Red Room soldiers survive - they Hydra now. They ended up looking for me, so I run, again and again. Hide and run. Never stay in place more than a month. I remember this place. I come here last month. Nice place. Madame B dead long time ago thanks to you and no one know about here but you. Couldn’t contact you, too risky. I am sorry.’

‘I understand – that makes sense, I’m sorry that you had to deal with that though.’ Yelena waved a hand dismissively and Natasha took another sip of her drink.

‘So, they survived? How? Wait, so the Hydra base…that’s why you were there - because there were soldiers from the Red Room there?’

‘Yes. Soldier from Red Room was stationed at Hydra base – he Hydra now. They survive underground, not many left now, you would not know – they were not there when you were in Red Room, newbie Soldiers. I go to kill him and I see you and American boy scout.’ Natasha smirked slightly at the name she had given to Steve and she watched as Yelena took another gulp of her drink; feeling dread fill her stomach at the thought that there were still Red Room agents out there, that was a problem for another time.

‘So, you miss me? Not seen you in long time.’ Natasha frowned at the joking lilt in her voice and she downed the rest of her drink and looked at Yelena seriously – her ‘adopted’ little sister was never the emotional type, neither was Natasha really, but she was willing to try and make amends.

‘Yelena, as soon as I saw you in December, I started looking for you daily, to fix things between us. I honestly tried looking for you. You just vanished after you left the Red Room and I thought you were dead when you never contacted me, because you said that when you left you would do and…‘

‘-do you want anything to eat? I am hungry.’ Yelena interrupted, standing up and walking over to a cabinet, not liking the emotional turn that the conversation was veering to.

‘No thank you. Please sit back down.’ Reluctantly, Yelena sat back down and sighed heavily, before she looked at Natasha with a sadness only visible to someone who had known her for years would be able to see; then a second later, it was replaced with a stoic expression.

‘Lena…’

‘No Tasha. Not your fault. You did what you had to do, even when you deferred, when I was in Red Room. No guilt allowed. I would have done same thing if I could. All is forgiven. Like I said. I am sorry for not making contact, was too risky.’ Natasha nodded, understanding just how hard it must have been for Yelena to continuously escape old Soldiers and agents from the Red Room for the better part of four years. She just wished that she had known that they had survived and had turned to Hydra, but Natasha knew better than most how easily things could be covered up, especially when dealing with people from the Red Room and Hydra.

‘I’m sorry. I should have come back for you…’

‘-No Tasha, no pity. I am fine now. We both make mistakes. Is in the past.’ Natasha nodded, relieved that there was no hostility between them.

‘The shooting last week in central Berlin, why did you do that if you’re staying low?’ Yelena shrugged and took another swig of her drink.

‘I overhear conversation – bad men wanted to kidnap young girls. I not let that happen. I kill the men. Quick and easy.’

‘So, you said you’ve been here for a month? Has anyone come after you?’

‘Yes and no, this place is safest I been in years. I make it my mission to kill soldiers that I know of. Only been shot at once since leaving Red Room. Was over a year ago.’ Yelena lifted up her top slightly and Natasha saw a bullet scar on her abdomen; it was a clean shot which meant it was likely from a Soviet sniper from the Red Room, alongside an array of old cuts and whip marks. Natasha sighed heavily and rubbed a hand down her face, tiredness starting to set in. Yelena looked at Natasha interestedly.

‘You look like shit Tasha. Bags under your eyes.’ Quirking an eyebrow, Natasha looked at Yelena who was smiling slightly.

‘Not that it’s any of your business, but I haven’t slept in over 40 hours. Also, you don’t look too hot yourself.’

‘I look better than you.’ The blonde quipped, smirking as Natasha rolled her eyes, grimacing as she looked down at her bloodied and dust covered clothes.

‘We talk, now what?’ Yelena asked suddenly, her voice cautious, as Natasha blinked and looked at her seriously, already knowing what she was going to offer her and not caring whether or not Fury was happy about it.

‘I want you to come back with me, back to New York. I can protect you. You will be safe. I give you my word. This was always going to be my offer to you, but I just couldn’t find you.’ Yelena’s eyes widened and she simply stared at Natasha, who waited patiently for a response. She hoped that Yelena would accept.

‘You want me come back with you? After all this time? Why?’

‘You deserve to live a proper life, to have a second chance, like I did. I want to give that to you. You can’t be happy being on the run for so long, that’s no way to find yourself and who you are by constantly running from place to place. So, what do you say?’ Yelena opened and closed her mouth a few times, clearly thinking very hard and trying to find the right words to say, but all she could do after a few long minutes, was nod, a genuine smile appearing on her face, which Natasha mirrored.

‘Yes. I would like that. I am bored of running now. No SHIELD though.’

‘Of course not. Ok, good. We will leave when it gets dark. Which should be in about 6 hours.. I’ll book the plane tickets now. Is there anywhere that I can clean up? I kind of want to get all the dust and blood off me, if you don’t mind and probably get some sleep.’ Yelena nodded and pointed down the hallway, as Natasha stood up.

‘Bathroom and bedroom down the hall to the left. There is dead mouse in bathroom.’

‘Excuse me?’

‘Dead mouse.’ Yelena repeated, making claw motions with her hands, that had Natasha smiling slightly.

‘Yes, I heard you and I know what a dead mouse is. Why is there a dead mouse in your bathroom?’

‘You got here when I was about to throw it out.’ She explained nonchalantly, as Natasha rolled her eyes and made her way to the bathroom, before she walked back to the kitchen and looked directly at Yelena.

‘It’s good to see you, Sis. I’ve missed you.’

‘Is good to see you too, Natasha. I have missed you too.’

***

Natasha collapsed into the bed and pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialled Clint’s number. He picked up immediately.

_‘Fuck Natasha, I thought something had happened! I was waiting for the 30 minute mark before sending the team in after you! You turned off your comm and…’_

‘I know Clint, I’m sorry. She didn’t trust me at first. Everything’s sorted out now, well, most things. We’ll be coming back later tonight – in about 6 hours, I’ve just booked the plane tickets.’

_‘That’s great! What time are you back…hang on, we?’_

‘Yes. I’ve told Yelena that she can stay at the Compound, with me. She’s ok considering the fact that she’s been on the run for the past few years.’

_‘What? On the run? Natasha! You can’t just invite a murderous assassin to stay in the Avengers Compound! Didn’t she try to kill you a few months ago?! Is she back working with the Red Room?’_

‘No, I already told you I burnt it to the ground just over a year ago, but she is being targeted by certain people who have links to that place – I’ll tell you when I get back. We have sorted things out now. She deserves a second chance, just like how you gave me one. She will be safest with me. I left her there Clint, I had to at the time, but now I can make things right.’ There was silence on the other end, apart from a door opening, a slight shuffling and hushed voices.

_‘…right. Yeah, ok. I understand, I’ll see you later, keep me updated. Can Riley talk to you for a minute?’ _There was a small squeal. Riley.

‘Of course. Put her on.’

_‘Natasha! Are you ok? What happened? Did you kill anyone? Is everything ok? When are you coming back?!’ _

‘Woah, woah. Um…yes, a lot of boring adult stuff, no, yes and soon. I miss you.’ There was a relieved sigh from the little girl and Natasha found herself missing her already, even though it had barely been 12 hours since she had seen her last.

_‘I miss you more! Me and Uncle Clint already played monopoly and I won!’ _Natasha smiled at the moniker that Riley had given to Clint and she stifled a yawn.

_‘_I’m happy that you’re having fun Mischief. I’ll be back before bedtime, ok?’

‘Ok! I love you.’

‘I love you too _malyska.’ _Natasha hung the phone up and shuffled under the covers, sighing tiredly. She was about to fall asleep when a glint of silver shone into her eyesight. Handcuffs. Bringing her hand up to the metal that was clipped around the metal of the bedframe, Natasha sighed heavily.

In the Red Room, they were handcuffed at night-time to the bed, to make sure that they could not escape and more importantly, so they did not attack anyone when they were unattended. Even on missions, they were given a spare pair, to remind them that they were not their own person, that they were controlled by the Red Room. Made to serve.

Yelena still clearly handcuffed herself to the bed at night and this meant that she was a lot more broken that she was letting on. Natasha made a promise to herself then, to make sure that she would do her utmost to help her.


	47. Conversation, Flight and Meeting new people

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha and Yelena make their way back to the safe house and Yelena meets Riley and Clint for the first time.

After changing their appearances slightly, with some of Yelena’s clothes and Natasha’s portable disguise kit (fake contact lenses, extra hair extensions and makeup); they made their way to the airport. When they had then checked in, Natasha and Yelena could be found waiting for their flight back to New York, talking over a coffee, in the furthest booth in a Starbucks. Yelena was smiling, drinking her coffee happily and taking in the sights – a rare luxury for someone who had been on the run for so long and who had been hidden away from the World all her life.

‘How are you liking your coffee?’

‘Is very good. Better than shitty instant powder mix.’ Natasha smirked, remembering the first time that she had bought herself a Starbucks Coffee after joining SHIELD; there was a lot that Yelena had yet to experience for the first time and Natasha knew this better than anyone; she also knew how overwhelming things could be at the start and so she was trying to ease Yelena into things slowly.

‘So, what is new with you? I tell people, my sister moved out West. You’re a science teacher. Your husband, he renovates houses. You’re thinking of moving, but you’re going to wait until the interest rates go down.’ Natasha let out a laugh and shook her head, before sipping her coffee.

‘That’s not my story. Not even close Lena.’

‘So, what is then, Tasha? Enough about me, want to know how you have been. You still secret agent, yes? Avenger now? I heard about you – I watch your Capitol Hill interview few years ago. Badass.’ Natasha snorted and shook her head in amusement.

‘It wasn’t my finest moment, but things needed to be said. After the original SHIELD fell, I became an Avenger full time. Since then, SHIELD has been reformed and built again, and is run by Agent Hill and Director Fury; however, I do not work for them anymore per say, although I help out with training the new recruits and doing paperwork and field missions, that sort of thing, from time to time.’

‘What about your personal life?’

‘I live in the Avengers Compound, on the outskirts of New York...’

‘I did not ask where you live, could read that in a museum, what is your actual life like?’ Yelena interrupted – interest clear in her eyes. Natasha pondered this for a moment, before answering, a small genuine smile appeared on her face.

‘My life is everything that I wished it could be. It has taken time, but I now know where I belong and who I am.’

‘You are sparse with details, as usual Tasha.’ The red haired woman rolled her eyes and then started talking about the intricacies of her role as an Avenger, how she found Riley and what her life was like in general.

‘-and then I left, to find you. Riley and Clint are at my safe house in New York, that is where we are going, before we head back to the Compound. You will meet them soon.’

‘I still cannot believe you have adopted daughter. How old is she?’

‘Not my daughter, Lena. I already told you, I’m her temporary guardian. She’s 11.’ Yelena chuckled and raised an eyebrow, as Natasha’s phone lit up with a text message and it showed that her home screen was a picture of Riley with ice-cream around her mouth.

‘Sure… I do not have to know you Tasha, to know that you care great deal for her. Why you not want to adopt her?’ Natasha immediately bristled at this and quickly protested.

‘I never said that I don’t. I have been thinking of adoption. I’ve been reading into it for a while…I’m just still unsure. Sometimes I think it could work, but then other times…I just do not think I’m right for her... things that have been inbred in you from childhood are… difficult to forget…’ Yelena knew exactly what Natasha was referring to – their time in the Red Room and she opened her mouth to reply, however, at that moment, a female attendants voice spoke up and called for boarding onto their flight.

‘Let’s go.’ Natasha said abruptly ending the conversation and she then stood up, as Yelena finished her drink and looked at Natasha earnestly.

‘I am happy for you _sestra.’_ Natasha gave Yelena a kind smile, before she squeezed her hand.

‘You can have this too, a normal and happy life. You deserve a second chance.’ Yelena shrugged and gestured to her empty coffee, smiling.

‘As long as I can have this coffee again, I will be happy.’

***

The flight back was quite unentertaining, with Natasha simply giving Yelena access to the internet, so she could find out more about American culture and she patiently answered any questions that the blonde woman had. Natasha had found out that Yelena had only gotten her news from the papers and from the odd for the past few years, since leaving the Red Room and that she was very unfamiliar with a lot of things.

‘-why so many cookies? They can’t eat all that! They get fat.’

‘They’re girl scouts, selling cookies to people for money. It’s part of an extra-curricular activity, that lots of children do.’

‘Weird. Sell cookies and not eat them. Does Riley do same thing?’ Natasha peered over at the google page that Yelena was on, as she read up about American past times and things that related to their culture and she shook her head.

‘No, I home school her, however she does gymnastics and drama three days a week at a prestigious school. She is very talented, we’re due to hear back about an audition that she did a few weeks ago for a show, in the next few days.’

‘Ah, for recital, yes? Like we did for Ballet?’ Natasha froze. She remembered vividly how they would have to train for hours on end, until either they passed out from sheer exhaustion, or malnourishment, or bones broke; the ones who lasted longest were privileged to perform in the Red Rooms end of year Ballet recital. Of course, this was always her and Yelena. She took a deep breath and forced herself to stay in the present and not to let her mind drift and wander.

‘It’s not quite like what you’re thinking, no. This particular audition was for a part in the drama clubs portrayal of Peter Pan – a popular book and film. The process of auditioning is the same – learn a piece and perform it to a good standard, however, the children are not pushed to the extremes that we were, at all. Does that answer your question?’ There was a slight warning tone to Natasha’s voice, that meant that she did not want to discuss this anymore, of course Yelena noticed and she nodded.

‘Yes. I think though, that she not go to a …high school all the time then?’

‘Middle School and no.’ Natasha corrected kindly and she waved her hand dismissively – not wanting to explain to Yelena that Riley had powers just yet, especially not when there were other people around – even if they were sat over ten rows behind them. Natasha wasn’t taking any chances when it came to Riley’s protection and she also figured that that talk would need more vodka and would be better in private.

‘I still can’t believe that you have never been to America on a target extraction or anything, while you were in the Red Room.’ Yelena shrugged and continued reading the article, as Natasha opened a packet of peanuts and started eating them.

‘Never got chance. Only missions were in Russia, then after Red Room, I travel around there for while and then go to Berlin last month, to safe house. No time for personal travel while on the run.’ Natasha nodded in understanding and then she smirked and pointed to a news article, that Yelena then clicked on.

‘What is this?’

‘It’s called a hot dog and it’s very nice.’ Yelena looked at Natasha in horror.

‘You eat dog? That is disgusting. Not good Tasha. Why you do that for?’ Natasha chuckled and shook her head before explaining what a hot dog was.

By the end of the flight, Yelena was adamant that she wanted to try all the Starbucks coffees on the menu, a hot dog, go to a baseball game, go to a theme park and iceskate at Rockefeller centre; Natasha couldn’t help herself from smiling.

***

Natasha pulled her car into the driveway of her safe house and she grinned, upon seeing Clint and Riley waiting for her arrival. Yelena was looking at the house and the two new people through the Windshield with a vague interested expression, although Natasha could see a slight tremble in her fingers, which were clenched into fists on her jeans.

Natasha parked the car; she could see a hint of silver in Clint’s waistband, where his hand was hovering slightly and she gave him a reassuring smile, as Riley ran over to her, with him following close behind.

‘NATASHA!’

‘Hey Mischief, I missed you!’ Natasha knelt down and embraced Riley as the little girl ran into her arms and hugged her tightly, grinning from ear to ear.

‘I missed you this much! Uncle Clint said this morning that he was staying and we are having a few more days here together!’ Riley held her arms out and Natasha nodded, then she took advantage and tickled her sides, making Riley burst into laughter and squirm out of her grip.

Clint gave Natasha a smile who returned it, as she stood back up and then he nodded to the car, looking over at Yelena who was leaning on it, watching the scene unfold intently with interest. Riley looked over to where Clint was looking and she looked up at Natasha in question.

‘We are continuing the vacation, yes, but I have got someone who I’d like you to meet first.’ Natasha said to the little girl, who frowned slightly, but nodded, before she shrunk back slightly so she was partly hiding behind Natasha, not liking the hard gaze that the woman was giving her.

‘Clint, Riley, this is Yelena Belova – my sister of sorts, from the Red Room, where I was raised. Yelena, this is Clint and this is Riley.’ Yelena softened her gaze slightly after a moment and she gave them both a friendly smile, although Natasha saw that the trepidation on her face was still evident. She knew exactly what Yelena was going through – it was the same thing that she had gone through when she was younger and had moved to America; Yelena was nervous and wanted them to like her. She wasn’t in disguise this time, there was no mask – she had to be herself and Natasha knew better than most, that that was the most terrifying thing for her.

‘It’s nice to meet you. I’m Clint Barton, Natasha’s work partner and more commonly known as…’

‘-Hawkeye. Yes. I know. I have done research. You shoot good electric taser arrows in Sokovia, I was impressed, I saw on the news. You teach me how to shoot arrows, yes?’ If Clint was surprised at the sudden request, it didn’t register on his face and he nodded, giving her a kind smile.

He remembered fondly what Natasha was like, when he had offered her a job in SHIELD when they met and he couldn’t help but see the similarities between the two women; the nervousness, the broken Russian accent and the need for a weapon; in this case, it was a knife which Yelena had evidently stolen from Natasha’s car that was showing slightly in her boot.

‘I would love to. If you’re anything like Nat, you’ll pick it up very quickly.’ Yelena laughed and she shook her head, smiling, pointing to Natasha.

‘No-one is like Tasha!’

‘You’re right, she’s her own special breed.’ Natasha lightly punched Clint on the arm, before she placed a gentle hand on Riley’s shoulder, who was still partly hiding behind her, her eyes focused on her trainers, she wasn’t going to admit it, but she was a bit scared of Yelena – she was slightly intimidating. Yelena seemed to sense this, so she knelt down into Riley’s view and she held out her hand, which Riley took tentatively.

‘You are Riley, yes? Is nice meeting you.’ The little girl nodded shyly, taking notice of Yelena’s accent, she wondered where she was from and then she remembered that Natasha had told her that she used to live in Russia.

‘Are you from Russia too? Natasha said it was cold there, is that why you’ve come here?’ Natasha snorted at this and Yelena stood up, a smirk appearing on her face, as she looked at Riley amusedly.

‘I like this one Tasha. I can see why you take interest in her.’ Riley looked up at them both in confusion, not understanding what was funny about her questions.

‘Yes, Yelena is from Russia too, we grew up together. She’s going to stay with us for a while.’

‘Why? Is she a serial killer?’ Yelena looked surprised at this and she raised an eyebrow, as Natasha looked at the 11 year old incredulously and then at Clint whose eyes widened. He then started taking an interest in a tree a little to the left of the group.

‘What? No, of course not. Where on earth did you hear that from?’

‘Uncle Clint let me watch a police drama show called Dextor when I couldn’t sleep after you left. It was a bit scary though and he had to skip it a few times when two people started making loud noises together – I think they were trying to open something, they were groaning and stuff. It was too scary. I didn’t like it much. I didn’t like all the blood.’ Riley shrugged nonchalantly as Natasha’s eyes almost popped out of her head.

‘Did he now?’ She glared at Clint, before walking over and chuffing him over the back of the head, hard, as Yelena laughed.

‘Ouch! Jesus Nat, give a man a warning would you?’

‘You let her watch Dexter?! She’s 11! It’s an adult show for a reason Barton. Would you let Lila and Cooper watch that?!’

‘There was nothing else on and I skipped all the bad parts! We were both bored, it wasn’t that bad!’

‘It was! Especially the part when they got killed by a hammer and then I screamed and…’

‘Riley! Stop ratting me out please, before Nat actually does kill me.’ Natasha’s face was stoic, however both Clint and Yelena could see the anger laced into her emotionless features and Yelena was still laughing. Riley closed her mouth and held back a giggle as Natasha flipped Clint off and then spoke in Russian to him.

_‘If you ever show her anything like that again, I will literally kill you and make it look like an accident. Also, if she has any nightmares, it’s on you.’ _

_‘She already did earlier, she’s fine now though…’_

_‘I swear to god.’_

‘I see that show. I watch in hotel room few times a long time ago. Is not for children’s eyes.’

‘Something we both agree on.’ Natasha replied easily, as Clint gave her an apologetic look, which Natasha rolled her eyes at, before walking over to get the bags from the car, as Yelena came over to give her a hand. Clint then took Riley inside, as they both discussed what takeout they wanted to eat for dinner that night.

‘Is funny, the American man. He has children, yes?’

‘He’s a dumbass, but he’s my dumbass. Yep. His wife is called Laura and his children are Lila, Cooper and Nate – they live a few hours away and he sees them as much as he can; I do too when I’m free from working. He’s the one who brought me to SHIELD all those years ago. I owe him so much. He isn’t one to judge and he understands your situation.’ Yelena nodded and took her very small duffle bag from the car, before Natasha put a hand on her shoulder.

‘Can I have my knife back please?’ Yelena huffed, her cheeks blushing slightly and she pulled a familiar knife from her left boot, before handing it back to Natasha sheepishly.

‘Nat…I just needed to…in case…’

‘-I understand. Don’t worry about it, I was the same after…everything. Anyway, I have a few spare weapons that you can have if you want them. There’s a shooting range inside too and a gym. It’s small, but it does the job. Riley’s in the main spare room, next to mine, and Clint is in the small one on the left; there’s another one downstairs on the right, that can be yours.’ They both began to walk into the house and Yelena spoke up quietly.

‘Thank you, for everything. How long we stay here for?’

‘It’s fine. Well, I already messaged Fury before we set off and got an extra few days off, as I promised Riley that I’d take her to the zoo and to the Statue of Liberty, I just said we wanted more time; I felt terrible about leaving, but I’m glad I did and now I can continue the mini vacation with her. Like I said, Clint is staying with us too, he told me that he had a bit of a hard time in a field mission a few days ago and I think we could all just use a few days to relax and adjust. It’s the perfect place to do so. Remote and quiet.’ Yelena nodded gratefully, looking wistfully around, hearing Riley and Clint’s faint laughter sounding from a few rooms away, before she turned to Natasha with a hint of impishness dancing around in her eyes.

‘We have shooting competition today? Yes? I win.’ Natasha laughed and rolled her eyes fondly.

‘Sure, I don’t mind beating your ass.’

‘Ha, you wish Tasha.’

‘Come on, let’s get you settled in.’ Yelena smiled and followed Natasha to her temporary room, feeling like her life was finally looking up.


	48. Scary new assassin, takeout and Disney

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yelena settles into the safe house and Riley isn't sure if she is scared of her or not.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all!   
Next chapter is already written and it's a big big one!!!
> 
> It'll be up in the next few days<3

Riley decided that Yelena was kind of like Bucky Barnes – a bit scary, good at making conversation, but that she was very observant…intensely so, almost as if she didn’t trust herself or know quite what she was supposed to do often.

When Natasha had gotten Yelena settled to have a shower and clean herself up properly, she went to tidy up the kitchen. After she had cleaned up, Yelena went to join Riley and Clint in the living room who were watching Frozen. Instantly her eyes widened as she turned into the room and saw that Riley was playing with water in the air – making patterns similar to those in the film, with Clint smiling fondly.

It was at this moment that Natasha also came into the room and her eyes darted from the television, to Riley and then to Yelena – whose hand was twitching near the waistband of her jeans, presumably where a knife was hidden, for protection. Sure enough, she then pulled one out, her eyes looking at Riley intently, who was still making patterns in the air with the water.

‘What the fuck!’ Yelena shouted with raised eyebrows, as her eyes cautiously glanced between Riley and the water in the air, which was now shapeless, as Riley whipped around, and her eyes widened at the knife; she looked ready to burst into tears. Clint swore under his breath and he jumped up to put a protective arm around Riley.

Without warning, the water suddenly fell from the air, flying over and covering both Yelena and Natasha, the latter immediately knocked the knife from Yelena’s hand, before she jumped out of the way and ran over to comfort Riley, who was now bordering on tears.

‘I… I’m sorry! I didn’t m…mean to! I…I lost control and…’

‘I know, it’s alright Mischief. It was my fault. I haven’t told Yelena yet, I wanted her to settle in first before we got to that later on today. I’m sorry.’ Natasha pulled the bracelet out of her sweatpants pocket and put it on Riley’s wrist gently, who was shaking. Clint was watching everyone with a hand clenched around an arrowhead he had been currently sharpening.

Yelena stayed completely still, watching everyone silently; she looked normal, but Natasha could see that her breathing was quickened and she was debating whether or not Riley was a threat; her eyes glanced at her knife which was on the other side of the room, however, she stayed still. Natasha placed a small kiss on the top of Riley’s head, before she then turned to Yelena, with a protective hand on Riley’s shoulder, who was trembling under her grasp.

‘Lena. I was going to tell you later on, as it’s a lot to take in, but Riley, she has powers – like Wanda Maximoff – Scarlett Witch. I’m sure you’ve heard of her if you’ve done your research properly on the Avengers. However, Riley’s powers are different, as she can control the elements.’ Yelena was looking at Riley and Natasha intently, before nodding, her horrified expression turning into her usual neutral one.

‘Have done research. She has mind control, yes?’ Clint slowly put down his arrow head on the table and gestured for Riley to come over, who did so and they both sat back down and she sunk into his side, watching the two sisters with wide eyes, as Clint combed his fingers through her hair.

‘Wanda does, but Riley does not. Riley only has control over the elements and is not a threat to anyone.’ Natasha said very firmly, leaving no room for argument, however, Yelena frowned.

‘Why you put bracelet on? I assume for dampening powers, yes? Why, if not threat?’

‘Sometimes she just loses control accidentally, like before. This was the safest way to make sure that nobody would ever be put in danger and just to avoid accidents. Riley is not a threat to anyone, Yelena.’ After a few seconds of looking between Riley and Natasha, Yelena then shrugged and sat down on the opposite sofa.

‘You say not threat. I believe you Tasha. I apologise for language, was surprised.’ Natasha nodded and knelt in front of Riley, who was still curled up into Clint’s side – his arm still protectively wrapped around her shoulders.

‘You ok, sweetheart?’ Riley nodded, her eyes were glued to her lap however, as she was embarrassed about losing control in front of Yelena. Natasha opened her mouth to ask if she wanted to have a walk outside, but Clint interrupted in a whining kind of voice that had Riley giggling, as she perked up.

‘Don’t know about you lot but I’m starving! Nat, can we eat soon?’ Natasha rolled her eyes, although she could see that Clint was just trying to lighten the atmosphere and it seemed to be working, as Yelena was smirking too.

‘How about we finish the movie and order some take out now? Sound good? It’s nearly dinner time anyway.’ Debating this for a few seconds, Riley nodded happily, as Natasha then pulled out her phone and started flicking through menu’s.

‘What are we all in the mood for then?’ Immediately Clint and Riley spoke up with their requests, however, Yelena stayed silent, a small frown appearing on her face, that was noticeable only for a moment.

‘Lena? Would you like anything in particular or should I order for you?’

‘I have whatever you have.’

‘Ok. So Clint is having Thai, Riley would like a cheeseburger and I think that me and Yelena will have a kebab each. That sound good?’ Everyone nodded in confirmation, as Yelena gave Natasha an appreciative smile.

‘What is movie about?’ Riley lit up at the question and she then proceeded to launch into a very detailed description of the plot line of Frozen and how Natasha had taken her to see it on Broadway, until Natasha placed a hand over her mouth so she wouldn’t spoil the ending of the film – which had Riley laughing her head off.

After a while, the movie was playing from the beginning – for Yelena’s benefit and the group were sat in front of the TV, eating their dinner happily, answering any questions that Yelena had.

‘You are like Elsa then, yes?’

‘Yeah! I can control water too! Not ice, but it’s kinda the same!’ Yelena smiled and nodded, picking at her meal, as she watched the TV.

Riley watched for a second, before she quickly swallowed her mouthful of burger and her eyes lit up, as she whispered something to Natasha, which had Yelena raising an eyebrow. Clint overheard and smirked, as Natasha nodded and Riley ran quickly out of the room.

‘Was something I said?’

‘No Lena, Riley just wants to show you something. She’ll be back in a moment.’ Sure enough, two minutes later, Riley walked unsteadily into the room, wearing her brand new Elsa dress, loud plastic shoes and matching accessories (Wig and tiara), beaming.

‘Look Yelena! Natasha bought me Elsa’s new dress from the second movie! I have the other one from this movie at home, but this one is my favourite!’ Yelena looked at Riley’s extravagant costume and she couldn’t help herself from smiling slightly.

Neither her or Natasha had had a proper childhood and so trying on different costumes and dress up in general, was never an option; the only time they wore something pink and costume like was in the Ballet recital in the Red Room, once a year.

‘Ah I see that. Looks good. Can you walk ok though? Shoes look uncomfortable.’

_‘They shouldn’t be uncomfortable, they cost a bloody fortune!_’ Natasha muttered under her breath in Russian as the adults laughed. Riley smiled too and proceeded to twirl for everyone, who gave her a clap at the end. Natasha then persuaded her to finish her meal and carry on watching the movie – with strict instructions, not to spill anything on her costume.

***

After the movie had finished, they all played a game of Operation – which Clint won, saying that he had had years of practise, as that game used to be Coopers favourite and Yelena found herself relaxing with the others, even enjoying a few games of noughts and crosses with Riley, as Natasha and Clint cleaned up.

Later on, Natasha put Riley to bed and afterwards, the three adults decided to sit outside, by the Fire Pit. They quickly settled into a comfortable conversation, drinking glasses of red wine, talking about anything and everything, as the sky plunged into darkness, besides the twinkling stars.

‘-so you’re permanently staying with us now Yelena?’ Looking to Natasha for confirmation, who immediately nodded and gave her a kind smile, Yelena then turned to Clint.

‘Yes, Tasha has offered me chance at new life and I accept. I leave old life behind for good.’ Clint nodded in understanding and he stretched his legs out.

‘You’re gonna love the Avengers Compound – it’s huge, full size gym, top of the range shooting area, target practice and the works. It’s awesome and the residents are okay, although a few are really annoying.’ Clint looked pointedly at Natasha who flipped him off and took a sip of her drink, as Yelena laughed, before seemingly realising something.

‘Is there initiation process, to enter building?’ Both Clint and Natasha frowned and shook their heads.

‘No, I’ll explain to everyone the situation and you’ll be staying on my floor. You’re more than welcome to live there.’

‘Yeah, you’ll fit in great, just be yourself Yelena.’ Clint added, giving her a kind smile, as Yelena looked into the distance, face stoic.

‘I do not know who that is.’ Natasha reached over and put a comforting hand on her shoulder, ignoring Yelena’s slight flinch.

‘It’ll take some time, Lena, but you’ll figure it out. We’re all here to help you. Come on, let’s head inside, it’s getting chilly.’ Clint nodded in agreement, as Yelena gave them both a small smile. They then made their way inside and settled on the sofas, before Clint and Natasha started talking about stories from the Compound – which Yelena found very amusing, especially when they recounted when Clint accidentally fell out of the Vent and landed on Tony’s head, making him spill oil everywhere in his lab.

‘-and then Steve came in and…’ A faint, muffled scream cut Clint off, sounding from above and there was only one place it could be coming from. Clint looked over to Natasha who had immediately stood up, she then ran upstairs, taking them three at a time, as the other two adults watched her go sadly, the sounds of screaming intensifying.

‘Night terrors, nasty things.’

‘I agree, she’s a tough cookie though, Nat’ll make sure she’s ok.’ Yelena nodded, turning the TV on, so that it provided some background noise, to drown out Riley’s screaming and to stop the memories that were threatening to overwhelm her of children screaming in the Red Room.


	49. Lost Girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha finally decides to go with her heart and admits her feelings about being a mother to Riley.

_Riley opened her eyes, realising that she was in a dark but familiar corridor that she hadn’t seen in a while and her stomach lurched. She was back in the Orphanage. Looking down, she saw that her clothes were holy and slightly too small for her and that she had a nasty cut on the inside of her arm. Instantly, her thoughts went to Natasha and her heart sped up at the fact that she was seemingly alone and back at the Orphanage, the assassin nowhere to be seen._

_‘Hello? Natasha? Anyone?’ Making her way down the dark corridor, willing herself to be brave, Riley peered into the first room and saw two children that she recognised from a long time ago; they stared at her and started laughing cruelly._

_‘Ha, back again Riley? Even a super assassin couldn’t deal with you! She adopted you and was your mom but then you almost killed her with your stupid powers!’ Riley looked at the girl in surprise and then her eyes welled with tears. Natasha was legally her mom…but she ruined it._

_‘Can’t believe she had you for this long. FREAK!’ Suddenly other children came into the room and started calling her names – as blue tendrils sprouted out of her hands._

_‘MONSTER!’_

_‘WITCH!’_

_‘YOU’RE WEAK! NOBODY WILL EVER WANT YOU!’ Riley put her hands over her eyes and she ran out of the room and down the corridor to the exit as fast as she could, until she saw a familiar red haired woman, standing by the front door, her face expressionless. _

_‘Natasha! Mom! I want to go home! Why am I here?!’ Natasha looked down at her with a disgusted expression and she pulled out a knife from her pocket, brandishing it in front of Riley._

_‘Stay away from me, with your stupid powers, it’s only a matter of time before you hurt me again and I am not staying around to wait for it. I tried to be your mother because I felt sorry for you, but it was a joke, I was only pretending to like you. You are back here, because you belong here, in a dump where nobody wants you. You are too much hassle for me. I never wanted any of this and I most certainly do not want you anymore.’ Riley was crying now, reaching out for Natasha, who pushed her away and gave her another look of disgust. _

_Natasha then opened the front door, before she slammed it behind her, watching with a cruel smile as Riley hammered on the glass, begging to be better, as her old foster father appeared and restrained her, whispering into her ear._

_‘Riles, it’s time to play our special game.’_

_‘NO! COME BACK! DON’T LEAVE ME HERE! I’LL BE BETTER! I CAN CHANGE! NATASHA! COME BACK! NATASHA! MOM! DON’T LEAVE ME HERE! I’M SORRY!’_

‘Riley wake up!’

‘NO! HELP ME! DON’T LEAVE ME HERE ON MY OWN! I’M SCARED!’

_‘Time to lock you up again for a few days, that’ll straighten you out.’_

_‘MOMMY!’_

***

Natasha heard the first scream and immediately ran upstairs, her only mission was to get to Riley. Appearing by her slightly ajar door, she instantly opened it and took in the scene before her, of Riley thrashing around on the bed, comforter tangled around her, as tears spilled down her flushed cheeks and she continued screaming.

‘Riley wake up!’ Natasha ran over to the bed and shook the little girl’s sweat covered shoulder to no avail, as she continued screaming and thrashing around, as tears poured down her face, murmuring inaudible broken sentences – although Natasha pieced together that she wanted something or someone to help her, which made her heart clench for her.

‘MOMMY!’ Natasha stopped in her tracks, when she heard Riley scream that, her hand was poised to shake her shoulder again, as her breath caught in her throat and she blinked in shock, as her brain tried to process what the little girl had just said.

Riley didn’t know her parents, which meant that she was calling…for her, but she had never called her that, only ‘mom’ when they were in disguise…did she really see her as her mother…for real? Was it such a stretch? Were all the Avengers right about her being a mother figure for her, without even realising it? After all, Natasha was almost fully set on adoption however, Natasha was quickly jolted back to reality as Riley continued screaming and calling for her, crying in her sleep.

‘Come on Kid, wake up, open your eyes!’ Natasha gave her a harder shake and Riley’s eyes burst open and she jolted up in bed, gasping for air, as tears streamed down her face.

‘Hey Kid, it’s okay, I’m here. You’re safe. Shhhh. It’s okay, you’re okay.’ Riley coughed with the force of her sobs and looked around the room half asleep, before her gaze landed on Natasha and she sobbed harder, sounds of her nightmare and of Natasha’s conversation with her thundering through her head.

‘M…mommy!’

‘Shhhh, shhhhh. You’re okay _malyska,_ I’m here.’ Natasha gently reached out and pulled the little girl onto her lap, as she wept, clinging to her tightly.

‘M…mom? O…oh… n…no! I…I’m s…sorry…I mean…N…Natas…’ Natasha quietly shushed her and placed a kiss on her head as Riley burst into tears again, trying to escape Natasha’s embrace, who instead, held her tighter and started rocking her slightly, feeling her own eyes water at the heartbroken tone of the little girl and the fact that she had just willingly called her, her mother whilst awake.

Somehow, it seemed like it sounded just right, like Riley was the missing piece to her life. It was as if, that all this time, Natasha was doubting herself if she could be her mother – if she could be anything more than what the Red Room made her, when infact she had already filled this position of a mother figure for Riley, without even meaning to.

‘It’s alright, you’re okay, you’re safe. I’m here, you’re not going anywhere. You’re safe, I promise, everything is alright.’ As Natasha said this, Riley stopped trying to squirm out of her grip and instead she buried her face into Natasha’s chest. Hot tears soaked into the assassin’s top and she gently ran her fingers through the little girl’s hair, as Riley continued to sob loudly, her fists clenching her top, as if worried she would disappear.

A few minutes passed and Natasha gently maneuvered them both, so they were sat against the headboard, as she continued to plant small kisses to the top of her head and whisper reassurances, whilst Riley sobbed and sobbed. After a few minutes Riley’s sobs subsided into hitching breaths and sniffles, and she wiped her eyes, as Natasha carded her fingers through her hair.

‘Wanna talk about it?’

‘N…no.’

‘Talking helps and I’m a pretty good listener. You’ve not had a nightmare that bad in quite a while. It sounded pretty scary.’ She felt Riley nod into her chest and after a moment or so, she recounted her nightmare in a slightly muffled voice, from where she had buried her face into Natasha’s chest.

‘-then they said that you had adopted me, but I…but I ruined it! You hated me! You said you…you were just pret…pretending to lik…like me and then…then you told me I was gonna…h…hurt you, but I wouldn’t! You s…said I was a hassle and…and that I should be in a…a dump and…no one wants m…me! I wanted y…you but…but you left me…th…then my foster f…father c…came and…he wanted me…me back…and… I called you my m…mom but I know you’re n…not…I’m sorry…you w…wouldn’t want someone as b…broken as me…I’m a monster!’ The final word ended on a loud sob as Riley tucked her face further into Natasha’s chest, taking deep breaths to try and calm down, as images from her nightmare whizzed around in her head.

Meanwhile Natasha blinked away a few tears in her eyes and she swallowed past a giant lump in her throat, before speaking in a voice so maternal, that she didn’t know that she was capable of it. The words that Clint had spoken to her, a few weeks prior echoed in her head, as she looked down at the upset little girl.

“You’re her mom in everything but blood.”

In was in that moment, that Natasha decided to ignore all the doubts and insecurities that had been forced into her mind from a young age, and follow what her heart was telling her…what it had been telling her for a while now. She took a deep breath to compose herself and she gently tilted Riley’s chin up, so their eyes met.

‘_Malyska. _Look at me sweetheart.’ Riley did so, although she was still crying, and Natasha gave her a gentle, but firm look.

‘You are not a monster and you are not broken at all. You have had a very unfair and difficult life, but I am so proud of the young woman that you are growing into.’ Natasha then softened her expression as Riley nodded slowly, but before she could say anything, Riley spoke up once more, her eyes wide.

‘I’m…I’m so sorry Natasha…I shouldn’t have…I know you aren’t my m...’ The assassin held up a hand, stopping Riley’s apology in her tracks and the little girl’s bottom lip wobbled slightly.

‘Don’t be sorry, at all…I honestly don’t mind Mischief…’ Riley looked at Natasha with wide eyes, her tears slowing, as Natasha continued speaking.

‘…we both know that I am not your biological mother, but I…’ Natasha then hesitated, swallowing another lump in her throat as she realised that her own emotions were starting to break through her composed exterior; and she allowed herself to be open and honest with Riley, as the child looked up at her through her big watery eyes as if she held the entire world in her hands.

‘…this isn’t exactly the way that I wanted this to go…at all actually, but I have been thinking of…of asking Fury, that is if he agrees…if I could make this arrangement permanent. Of course, there will be some paperwork and meetings, however, I’m sure that Tony can sort it all out, I don’t know, I haven’t quite figured it all out yet. This mini vacation was just so I could prove to myself that it would work and everyone else thinks it will work and after we spent the day in New York together and just…after everything...now… I… I think it will work too, if you agree?’ Riley frowned at the unusual nervousness in Natasha’s voice and also the fact that her sleep-addled brain wasn’t functioning great, so she had no idea what Natasha was on about.

‘Huh? Make what… permanent?’ Natasha rolled her eyes, although there was no real annoyance in them and she huffed out a breath, before she looked at Riley seriously. Her entire expression was open. It was full of nervousness, hope and also something else that Riley couldn’t pin point, as nobody had ever looked at her like that before.

‘Riley, You’ve dealt with a lot of crap in your life and you’re only 11! You are the most incredible kid that I’ve ever met in my life and you bring so much fun and laughter to the team.

When I met you last year, when you were living on the streets, it broke my heart and I took you in, no questions asked, because I made a promise to myself then, that you would never be alone or feel that way again, as you reminded me of myself. I love you Riley, so much and I still have no idea what I did in my crazy messed up life to deserve you, but I want you to know that you’re my daughter, in all but blood and I want you to be my daughter, for real.

I just needed to prove to myself that I could be your…be your mom and I think that I can be, actually… I think that I have been for a while now. I love you Mischief and what I’m asking you, is that… if you want, I would really love to adopt you Riley, if you want me to? I would be honoured to be your mom, not for a disguise this time or for a joke like in your nightmare, but for real. It’s me and you Kid, forever, if you want it to be?’ Natasha finished speaking and cautiously looked at Riley’s expression for any sign that she was horrified at this or didn’t want it, but all she saw was a little girl whose upset expression turned slowly into the biggest smile that she had ever seen on her.

Launching herself at Natasha, Riley burst into a new round of tears, this time happy ones, and Natasha couldn’t help herself from letting a few slip, as the little girl hugged her whilst she nodded rapidly into her chest, as Natasha embraced her tightly.

‘Is that a yes?’

‘Y…yes! Yes! A million times yes! I love you mommy.’ Natasha chuckled and placed a kiss on the top of her head, her heart feeling lighter than it had ever been.

‘I love you more Mischief.’ Natasha whispered, kissing her forehead, as Riley looked up at her; it was in that moment, that Natasha finally realised what the warm feeling had been in her stomach that she had experienced so often and Riley also realised what the look had been in Natasha’s eyes so many times when she had looked at her.

It was love.


	50. Nerf guns, Agents and food fights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint, Yelena, Riley and Natasha decide to have a little indoor fun, whilst it is raining, before they're due to go out into the city later in the day.

After finally getting Riley to go back to sleep, Natasha had come downstairs and had broken the news of the adoption to Clint and Yelena, who were thrilled for them both. The trio had then spent the next few hours chatting happily, drinking some of Natasha’s expensive old Russian wine – that she had been saving in the pantry for a special occasion. A little after midnight, they made their way to their respective bedrooms, and Natasha couldn’t stop herself from smiling as got herself ready for bed; she was going to be Riley’s mom, for real. Settling in bed, Natasha reached over to turn the bedside lamp off, when all of a sudden her door opened and a very tired little girl was standing there, rubbing sleep out of her eyes, whilst she held her bear.

‘Mommy?’

‘Hey, what are you doing up Mischief? Did you have another nightmare?’

‘No, but I can’t fall asleep.’ Natasha nodded in understanding, knowing very well how difficult it was after a nightmare to get back to sleep. Riley bit her lip and looked at Natasha hopefully.

‘Can I sleep with you tonight?’

‘Of course sweetheart, come on up.’ Riley smiled and clambered up onto the large kingsize bed, as Natasha lifted the comforter up for her. The little girl shuffled under the comforter and buried herself further into the blankets – curling herself up into Natasha’s embrace, who then planted a small kiss on the top of her head, before she then plastered kisses all over Riley’s face.

‘Better now?’ Riley giggled and nodded against her chest. A few seconds passed and Natasha found herself absentmindedly running her slender fingers through Riley’s curly hair, as the little girl looked up at her.

‘Mommy?’

‘Yes _malyska_?’

‘Can you sing to me?’ Natasha blinked, a bit thrown off guard, as nobody had ever asked that of her before. Riley looked up at Natasha as if she held the entire world in her hands and Natasha nodded slowly, swallowing past a lump in her throat, very aware how maternal this situation was; but strangely, she found that she didn’t mind and so, she started singing a soothing Russian lullaby.

She pulls Riley closer to her and the little girl listens to Natasha’s hauntingly beautiful, soft velvety voice, as she feels her eye lids grow heavier and all the tension of the night finally leave her body. Natasha smiles and brushes her finger down the bridge of Riley’s nose, lovingly and slowly, as Riley’s eyelids flutter closed and she finally gives into the pull of sleep.

_‘Сладкие мечты _ _malyska.’_

***

The following morning, it was raining and the group were not set to go into the city until the afternoon and Riley was pretty bored. They were all currently sat in the living room, watching a nature documentary, and Natasha noticed how Riley was swinging her legs in a bored way and also how she kept looking over at Yelena, as if wanting to talk to her, but not knowing how to initiate a conversation. Natasha brushed a few stray curls off the little girl’s forehead, before she had a sudden idea – which would also be a good bonding exercise. She stood up and gave Riley a mischievous smile.

‘How about we give that huge nerf set a test drive that you got from the Disney Store? Hmm?’ Riley’s eyes widened, before she nodded eagerly, standing up and then she looked over at Clint.

‘Will you play too?!’

‘Sure squirt. I’m pretty certain that I’ll win though.’ Riley giggled and nodded her head in confirmation, before she glanced cautiously over at Yelena, who was looking out of the window. Natasha gave her an encouraging smile and Riley walked over to the blonde woman – who raised an eyebrow at her, when she gently tapped her arm to get her attention.

‘Um…would you like to play with the nerf guns that I have? We can play in teams or separately. You don’t have to but it will be lots of fun. There are guns and bows and I think there’s even a blaster!’ Yelena went from a confused expression to one of horror and she looked over at Natasha, who quirked an eyebrow in question.

‘You let her play with guns and other weapons? Seriously?’

‘Of course I don’t give an 11 year old weapons to play with. They are children’s toys and they’re pretty awesome. Riley has quite a good collection now and these ones were pink and purple so she really wanted them. Are you in or out?’

‘In.’ Yelena replied swiftly, as Riley smiled. Natasha nodded, before she walked out of the room and came back a few seconds later with the nerf set, before handing it to Yelena.

‘See. Perfectly safe.’

‘Unless you get fired in the eye!’ Clint added, as Riley giggled.

‘No aiming for eyes or faces for that matter.’ Natasha said firmly, taking the box and opening it, giving Riley first dibs for the toy that she wanted – which was of course the biggest pink gun. The three adults then chose their toy – with Clint of course grabbing the only bow and arrow.

Natasha and Yelena each took the other two guns and the group loaded their weapons with the soft darts and arrows.

‘Teams?’ Clint asked, as Natasha nodded.

‘Who do you want to pair with, Kid?’ Riley hummed thoughtfully and ran over to Clint who gave her a high five.

‘Traitor.’ Natasha muttered, as the little girl shrugged and pointed to Clint, as Yelena smirked.

‘He’s good with a bow!’

‘I’m good with a gun!’

‘Yeah but a bow is cooler.’ Natasha feigned being hurt, holding a hand over her heart, as Clint winked at her and gave her a shit-eating smirk.

‘See Tasha, I’m cooler.’ Subtly giving him the finger when Riley wasn’t looking, Natasha then walked over to Yelena and started discussing battle strategies, as Clint and Riley did the same thing. Walkie Talkies were handed out – so the teams could talk if they were hidden in different places.

‘Right. Rules then. Inside only, full use of all the rooms, no face shots or pranks of any kind - Clint…’ Natasha added, as Riley burst out laughing at the indignant look on his face.

‘- no switching teams, first team with the most hits, loses. Walkie Talkies can be used. Are we all ready?’ Riley grinned and high-fived Clint, as Natasha and Yelena bared their teeth and cracked their knuckles in a funny manner.

‘Ready?’ Everyone nodded and Natasha smirked, before yelling ‘GO!’

***

It had been approximately four minutes of running and hiding, and Riley was crouched behind the grand piano, her blaster in hand and the walkie talkie in the other, which crackled to life.

_‘Come in Agent Elsa.’_

‘Agent Elsa is here! What’s the problem Agent Sven?’

_‘Why am I called Sven? Can’t I at least be one of the humans?’_

‘No! We can’t change the names now!’

_‘Well, can’t I be Ol…oh no. I hear movement Agent Elsa! Scary Assassin Natasha is onto me!’_

‘Sven?! Sven?! Come in! Are you ok?!’ The walkie talkie was silent and Riley bit her lip nervously, before peering out from her hiding spot. They had decided to hide at the front and back of the house, hopefully to jump out at the two sisters and trap them, however, it seemed as if Clint had been found.

Riley nervously held her blaster and peeked out, before crawling on the floor, towards the couch, when she saw movement by the kitchen door and a foam bullet caught her left ankle.

‘AH!’ Yelena smirked and posed her gun to shoot another one at Riley, just as Clint ran into the room and aimed an arrow at her midriff, causing her to stumble, followed by Natasha who had flung herself behind the TV for cover.

‘Quick! Let’s go Agent Elsa!’ Clint gave Riley a hand up and together they ran quickly out of the room, with Yelena chasing them, before the pair of them separated and flung themselves into separate rooms to find a hiding space. Yelena followed Riley, who had managed to sneak through the joined bedrooms of hers and Natasha’s and had hidden under the bed; her heart beating fast.

‘I know you’re in here little one. I can hear your breathing.’ Riley clamped a hand over her mouth and waited nervously, as footsteps neared the bed. Just when Yelena was about to find her, there was a shout behind her and the assassin swore in Russian, a foam arrow hitting the floor, before she ran out of the room after Clint.

Riley breathed a sigh of relief and shuffled out from under the bed, reloading her blaster and turning on the walkie talkie.

‘Sven? Sven come in! Are you ok?!’

_‘I’ve been hit! Only a minor injury, but I’m almost out of ammo now and I think Yelena is too – I’m not sure where Natasha has gone though! How are you doing Agent?’_

‘Um, I have a few bullets left, but I’m almost out too! This is really scary actually Agent Sven.’

_‘Don’t worry Agent Elsa, we’ve got this. Meet me in the kitchen in T-minus 2 minutes and we can discuss a new battle plan, ok? I’ll try and take out Blondie.’_

‘Ok, over and out!’ Riley put the walkie talkie back in her pocket and then she froze as she heard a creak in the floorboards from the hallway. Shuffling backwards, she hid by the doorframe, and held her blaster out, ready to fire.

Frowning, when there was silence, Riley peeked out and screamed as Natasha jumped out of nowhere and shot a foam bullet at her knee.

‘AH!’ Aiming quickly, Riley fired shot after shot at Natasha, who dodged them easily, however after a few seconds she decided to reward her determination and she made her leg drag slower than before, so that the little girl managed to hit it with a foam bullet.

‘Haha! Got you!’ Riley shrieked, as she ran into her room and crawled under the bed, giggling madly, as she felt Natasha jump on the top of the bed. There was complete silence for a few moments, until Riley decided to peer out, but unfortunately she felt someone grab the back of her legs and pull her out the opposite direction from under her bed; she shrieked and dropped her blaster, as Natasha pulled her out completely and started tickling her madly.

‘No! AH!’

‘Do you admit defeat?’

‘No! NEVER!’ Riley giggled, as Natasha’s fingers continued to dance up and down her sides, making the little girl shriek with laughter as she tried to squirm out of her grasp.

‘How about now?’ Natasha pulled Riley’s feet towards her and tickled them, causing the little girl to erupt into new giggles and shrieks, trying to crawl away, until her face was red and she was gasping for breath.

‘OK! YOU WIN!’ Nodding in agreement, Natasha stopped tickling her and let her loose, as there was a scream that sounded from the kitchen, which was unmistakably Clint.

‘Oh no! Yelena got him!’ Riley said in horror, as Natasha helped her up and handed her her blaster back.

‘Let’s go see what’s happened, I'm sure everything is fine.’ Natasha said smirking, as Riley ran ahead towards the kitchen, to find Clint covered in trifle and Yelena smiling wickedly. Natasha’s eyes widened, as she realised that everything was not fine at all and she looked at Yelena with a raised eyebrow.

‘You never said no to using other things. I ran out of ammo and so I choose this instead to use. Is tasty.’ Yelena said with a shrug, as she licked her finger, before she threw the rest of the trifle at Natasha, who ducked and Riley then screamed and got a full face of it.

Natasha instantly jumped over the kitchen counter and opened a cabinet, before she emerged with a tin of whipped cream, a bottle of syrup and a can of squeezy chocolate sauce. Handing them out quickly to Clint and Riley, and taking the syrup for herself, Natasha then smirked and looked at Yelena, as Riley and Clint held up their ‘weapons’ at each other who’s eyes widened as she realised it was now a food fight.

Picking up a bowl of cake mix, from the kitchen counter, Yelena then smiled at Natasha, waiting for her to make the first move, when Clint suddenly drenched her in chocolate sauce, before aiming for Natasha, who also got a face full of it and looked at him amusedly, as Riley burst out laughing.

‘Oh, it’s on.’


	51. Bonding with Yelena

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yelena and Riley get to know each other and realise that they are more alike than they first thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all!  
I've been super busy recently and will only be able to update once every week or so now - as I'm back at University.   
I have read all your comments and will do my best to incorporate your requests into the story line! Here's one from anaromanoff that was asked a few days ago!
> 
> Thanks for reading and I hope you like it!  
MarvelObsessedgirl3  
xx

After what Natasha would describe as ‘the messiest food fight known to man’ – the group all traipsed to their bathrooms to get cleaned up for their afternoon out in the city. Natasha had washed herself and was knelt by the bathtub, busy helping Riley to wash her hair, realising that by this point, there was more cream, syrup and sauce on her head than there was hair.

‘Ouch! You pulled!’

‘Sorry Kiddo, but your hair is covered in it all. I’m being as gentle as I can. I can’t believe how messy you were!’ Riley nodded and continued making a large bubble beard with the strawberry bubble bath that she always loved using and her powers made the bubbles pop almost musically, making them both smile.

‘It was Uncle Clint’s fault! He made me jump and then I ducked, but he squirted the tin onto my head and then Yelena then threw the cake mixture down my top!’

‘That was because you sprayed her in the face with chocolate sauce.’ Natasha reminded Riley, as she rubbed shampoo into her hair. Riley giggled and shrugged, looking back at Natasha who put a blob of shampoo onto her nose.

‘It was funny though!’

‘It was. Ok, head back please, eyes closed.’ Natasha gently tilted the little girl’s head and poured water over the shampoo, making sure to rinse it all out, as Riley scrunched her face up and squeezed her eyes closed.

‘All done. Come on out.’ Riley stood up and took Natasha’s hand to steady herself, before the assassin swaddled her in a giant fluffy towel.

‘Remember when I first had a bath at the Compound after I got scared and you called me a happy burrito?’ Natasha thought back for a moment and nodded, smiling at the memory.

‘Yes, I do. That seems like so long ago, doesn’t it?’

‘Yeah! Like years and years!’ Natasha smiled as Riley nodded and grinned at her cheekily before shaking her wet hair at her.

‘You little terror!’ Natasha then grabbed a towel and ruffled her hair in it, laughing as Riley shrieked in shock and tried unsuccessfully to wriggle away.

‘No!’

‘This is what you get for getting me all wet again! Also, you can’t go out with wet hair Mischief. Come on, let me dry it properly.’ Riley giggled as Natasha tickled her with the towel and proceeded to dry her hair much more gently for her, using a hairdryer too.

When Natasha deemed Riley’s hair as dry, the little girl ran off to her bedroom to get dressed, whilst Natasha made her way downstairs to help the others finish cleaning the kitchen. After a while, the group was clean, the house was tidy and they all got into Natasha’s car, ready to go into the city.

For the rest of the day, the four of them explored New York City – with Natasha having organised a trip to the Statue of Liberty and the Zoo – which Riley deemed as being ‘the bestest zoo in the history of the world!’ Riley couldn’t remember ever having as much fun as she had done that afternoon; she felt as if she was finally part of a proper, albeit it very unconventional family and when she felt slightly overwhelmed at the crowded areas, she would hold Natasha’s hand, smiling when her adoptive mother to be gave her hand a comforting squeeze.

The highlight of the evening, had to be when they all had eaten dinner in an expensive restaurant and were walking down Times Square, when Natasha received a phone call from Riley’s Drama teacher – who announced that she had successfully been given the role of Tinkerbell in their production of Peter Pan. Riley had never felt so happy in all her life and even Yelena was grinning at the little girl’s enthusiasm, as she jumped up and down shrieking excitedly in the middle of Times Square.

Of course, when they all arrived back at the safe house, with one more day left before they went back to the Avengers Compound, Clint decided that it was the perfect opportunity to watch Disney’s adaptation of Peter Pan – which Riley was thrilled about; she even brought some of her toy fairies to play with whilst the movie was on.

***

All too soon, it was time for the group to leave the following day.

Natasha and Clint were doing a few final security checks of the car and the house, to make sure that everything was in place, before their departure, which left Riley in the living room, playing with a few of her dolls. A few minutes later, Yelena appeared by the doorway and watched her with slight interest, before she broke the silence.

‘We leave soon.’ Riley looked up from playing with one of her hand-sized frozen dolls and she nodded, before turning back to her pretend game, as Yelena turned round to leave, but instead she stopped and frowned. She had spent time with Riley, just not on her own yet and she wanted to get to know the little girl, but she didn’t really know how to initiate a conversation with a child; so, she decided to just go with her instincts.

‘So…you had good trip here, yes?’ Riley looked up again and this time she grinned and nodded enthusiastically at Yelena, who had moved towards where she was sitting now.

‘Yeah, it was awesome! I still can’t believe that Natasha is going to be my mom for real!’ Yelena gave her a genuine smile, which was rare of her and then they fell into a bit of an uneasy silence, neither one knowing what to say. Riley bit her lip slightly, before she held out one of her frozen dolls to Yelena, who looked at it blankly.

‘What this?’

‘One of my dolls, you can play too if you want to.’ Riley said nonchalantly, missing the shock flicker across the assassin’s face, which was replaced by her usual neutral expression as she took the doll from the girl’s outstretched hand, and sat down near her.

‘What are rules?’ Yelena asked, turning the doll over in her hands, as Riley tilted her head and realised that like her, Yelena would have never played before in her life; Natasha had had practice with Clint’s children, but it looked as though Yelena had no idea what to do.

‘There are no rules, unless you make some up. Playing is using your imagination and you can do whatever you want to! I’m pretending that my dolls are having a fashion show! Look – I even brought some clothes that you can change them into!’ Riley said eagerly, as she pulled a small bag towards her, that had small clothes inside – clearly made for children’s toys. Yelena looked slightly confused still, however, after a bit of prompting from the little girl, she soon got the hang of it and even started to enjoy herself.

‘-and that’s why I think that I should be allowed to have a later bedtime.’ Riley concluded, as Yelena shook her head in amusement.

‘A good argument, but I wish you luck in trying to convince Tasha. You fell asleep yesterday before end of movie, remember?’ Scowling in realisation, Riley groaned and nodded in defeat.

‘Oh! I forgot that… anyway, did you like Peter Pan? What kinds of movies did you like at my age?’ A look that Riley couldn’t identify, flickered across Yelena’s face for a brief moment, before she shrugged nonchalantly and re-dressed her doll in a different outfit, avoiding eye contact with Riley.

‘Was good. Long time ago – I not remember.’ She replied, as Riley nodded and tilted her head.

‘What’s your favourite colour?’

‘Orange. Yours?’

‘Pink, but I like blue too.’

‘Favourite animal?’

‘Puppies! I want one but mom says no, although Uncle Clint is trying to persuade her!’

‘Good luck with that. Tasha is more a cat person.’

‘I know – um, favourite thing to do as a Kid and now?’ Yelena’s hand stilled from re-dressing the doll in her hands, before she shrugged.

‘Had many hobbies – too many to say now. Same as other children. Nothing special. Now, I enjoy many things.’ She gave Riley a forced smile but Riley furrowed her eyebrows before putting her doll down and playing with her fingernails.

‘Just so you know, you don’t have to lie to me.’ She said quietly, as Yelena’s head whipped up and she looked at her intently.

‘How you know I lie?’ Riley shrugged and bit her lip again.

‘I didn’t exactly know for certain, I kinda read between the lines – when you said you didn’t know how to play and stuff, before; I used to lie a lot when I was younger, because I didn’t have the same stuff as other kids when I was growing up in the Orphanage or the foster homes. I just wondered if you were like me, because I always used to say that too; that I pretended that I did all the same stuff as other kids, but I never actually gave any examples.’ To her surprise, Yelena smirked and flicked her hair back, before she hummed thoughtfully.

‘You would make good spy. Very observant.’ Riley smiled and then she bit her lip.

‘Sorry tha…’

‘-no apologies. You just curious, I understand. How you learn how to do this with the dolls, if you not grow up with toys and things?’

‘Natasha helped me, she taught me how.’ Yelena nodded and started styling her dolls hair, as Riley thought how to voice her next question in a way that didn’t upset Yelena.

‘Have you known Natasha since you were little then?’

‘Yes. We grew up in same place. Like sisters, very close. Been apart for long time as circumstances changed, but the bond still there.’

‘So, if Natasha is gonna be my mom, can I call you Auntie Yelena then?’ Yelena’s eyebrows shot up at this and Riley giggled at her shocked expression, as the assassin threw a cushion at her and smiled.

‘I not see a problem with it.’ She replied, dressing her doll in the most extravagant outfit she could make up, which had Riley giggling.

‘Why does your doll look like that?!’ Riley asked, laughing, as Yelena smirked and shrugged, looking at her doll with a proud grin.

‘Looks better than yours. Mine is fit.’

‘Rude!’

‘But true.’ Yelena said, quirking an eyebrow as Riley stuck her tongue out at her. Hesitantly, she stuck her own out at the girl and Riley started laughing again, which made Yelena grin – feeling as if she was getting the hang of this.

Maybe being someones Aunt... being part of a family... wouldn't be too bad after all.


	52. Domestic life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone settles back into a new routine with Yelena

After a long trip back to the Compound, Natasha, Yelena, Clint and Riley arrived back at the Compound and after meeting with the rest of the team and revealing the news about Natasha adopting Riley, they all settled in well and things were getting back to the usual routine.

The following day, Riley was currently at Drama class and the team and Yelena were watching a movie in the communal area, when Natasha broke away from everyone to make a much needed phonecall.

Pulling out her phone, she dialled a familiar number and moved down the hallway to her office, before the recipient picked up. She took a deep breath and tried to calm her breathing, feeling a mixture of nerves, excitement, trepidation and also relief.

‘Hey Nick, it’s me. Can we meet tomorrow for lunch? I want to discuss Riley’s placement…no…it’s nothing like that…actually it’s the complete opposite…I’ve decided that I would like to be her placement permanently… I would like to adopt her. Yes, I know, I am aware of that. She will be staying in the Compound with me; Clint will be my next point of call – if anything was to happen to me…yes, I know, I have thoroughly thought this through Nick. Thank you, I’ll see you tomorrow…ok, yes, bye.’ Natasha hung up and put her phone down, very aware of the large smile that she couldn’t keep off her face; sitting down, she turned on her laptop and began to sort through a pile of paperwork, when there was a knock on her office door.

‘Yes?’ The door opened and Yelena walked in, dressed in workout gear, smirking. Natasha quirked an eyebrow at her.

‘I wasn’t aware that we had scheduled training for this afternoon.’

‘You work too hard Natalia. We spar now. Barton is too predictable when fighting, you are not.’ Natasha snorted and gave her a sad smile, holding up her paperwork.

‘Sorry Lena, but I’m a bit snowed under and I have to pick Riley up in an hour. Why don’t you ask Steve or Bucky?’

‘No, I ask you, or I could tell everyone that I bested you in combat and you hide in here out of shame.’ Natasha scoffed and stood up, giving Yelena a roll of her eyes.

‘Fine. Only for a half hour though, deal?’

‘Deal.’

***

Natasha wouldn’t admit it, but sparing with Yelena was a challenge for her. They were both trained the same way and were almost equally skilled in combat, and so Natasha found herself using different strategies than she would with the Avengers, in order to gain the upper hand with Yelena.

After both sisters were breathing heavily and were tired, they called it quits for that day and went to get cleaned up. Natasha had her hand on her bathroom door, when Yelena tapped her on the shoulder.

‘What is for dinner?’

‘Well, it’s my turn to cook and Riley has requested a Thai Curry, but if you want something else, I’m sure that I can make…’

‘-no, Curry is fine. Thank you. I will help prepare.’

‘Lena it’s fine…’

‘-no, I insist Tasha, I pull weight. You be so kind letting me stay here and I will help.’

‘Yelena, honestly it’s fine, really, I just need to get cleaned up and…’

‘-no arguments, I will help.’ With that, Yelena walked swiftly down the hallway and went into her temporary bedroom at the other end of the floor, to get cleaned up, leaving Natasha looking after her sadly.

As soon as they had arrived back at the Compound the previous day, Natasha had been very aware of Yelena’s…change in personality. It was subtle, so Clint and Riley hadn’t picked up on it, but she had. There were the more frequent false smiles and fake laughs; she herself had done the same when she had first left the Red Room – acted like someone else that was likeable to others, so that people around her wouldn’t see through her mask and to who she really was, however, Yelena was also very insistent on helping whenever she could. It was as if she was trying to make up for something; Natasha knew that feeling well and despite her trying to tell Yelena that she didn’t need to help everyone all the time, she hadn’t been successful as of yet.

When Natasha had showered and changed her clothes, she went into the kitchen to prepare dinner. After a heated argument with Sam over how long rice took to cook, (Natasha won the argument of course), she grabbed her car keys and set off to pick up Riley, who was due to finish her Drama class very soon. Answering a few emails on her phone, Natasha whipped around to see Riley running towards her, calling her name.

‘Mom! Mom!’ Smiling, Natasha put her phone away and opened her arms; Riley grinned and ran into her embrace, panting slightly from all the running.

‘Hey Mischief, did you run all the way here from the Drama block?’

‘Yeah!’

‘Can I ask why?’ Natasha quirked an eyebrow as Riley turned around, opened her backpack and then pulled out a piece of paper with a large gold star on it, before handing it to Natasha, who looked at it blankly for a second, before she realised what it was and she beamed.

‘I got star of the month!’

‘Well done _malyska! _I’m so proud of you!’ Riley gave her a toothy grin and did a little dance on the spot as Natasha laughed and picked up her backpack for her, before they walked to the car.

‘Did Mr Thompson tell you what specifically you got the award for?’ Riley nodded as Natasha started the car and drove out of the carpark.

‘Yep! He said that I have improved on my stage presence and my acting skills. Oh! And also, that I always help the other children and that I am an exempolarly…’

‘-exemplary; it basically means excellent.’

‘Yeah that I am an exemplary drama student and I am a pleasure to have in the class!’ Natasha couldn’t keep the beam off her face; she felt completely and utterly proud of Riley and it brought her so much happiness that she was improving so well in her extra-curricular classes in school.

The car ride back went by in a flash of frozen singalongs, traffic jams and eye-spy and by the time they had arrived at the Compound, it was very much time for dinner.

‘Hope you’re hungry little miss, I’m making Thai Curry.’

‘Yey!’

‘Do you want to help me finish cooking it or…’ Riley instantly shook her head and made to walk into the communal area.

‘-actually can I go and talk to Uncle Clint for a bit? I just really need to talk to him.’

‘Sure…is everything ok? You know you can always talk to me, right?’

‘Yep. I just need to talk to him. Is that ok?’ Blinking slightly in shock, Natasha then smiled and nodded, albeit slightly confused as to why Riley wanted to talk to Clint so urgently.

‘Of course you can, but dinner will be ready in about ten minutes or so.’

‘Ok!’ With that, Riley ran off into the communal area, whilst Natasha made her way into the kitchen to finish preparing dinner. To her surprise she found Yelena sat by herself at the kitchen counter. As soon as Yelena saw her approach, she jumped up and offered her services, before she raised an eyebrow.

‘At ease soldier, I’ve got it all handled.’

‘You look confused Tasha.’

‘I do?’ Natasha replied, straining water from the rice, as Yelena nodded.

‘Yes. What is troubling you?’

‘Nothing, really. Riley just usually helps me cook and set the table for dinner, but she went to talk to Clint about something that seemed quite urgent…’

‘-and did not talk to you about it.’ Yelena finished, as Natasha trailed off, stirring the mixture in the three pans (enough to feed supersoldiers and the rest of the team). Natasha then huffed and did not say anything, apart from continuing to stir the curry, when she felt a tentative pat on her shoulder.

‘She knows she can talk to you. I can find out what is going on, yes?’ Natasha shook her head instantly and turned to face Yelena, who was now taking out plates and bowls from the cupboard.

‘No. Clint will tell me if it is anything that I need to know about. I just don’t like not being her first point of call for whatever reason this time.’ Yelena stayed silent, and all that was heard for a few moments was the clinking of ceramic and the bubbling of the curry.

‘You are doing good. Riley knows you are there and she is happy. You are good mother.’ Natasha nodded and felt a bit of tension leave her shoulders, as Yelena gave her a rare genuine smile and started setting the table.

***

‘Uncle Clint!’

Clint was watching a documentary on nature in the living room with Sam and Bucky, when all of a sudden, a certain little girl ran into the room and stood in front of the TV, her expression urgent and serious – which had Clint immediately in mission mode.

‘Riley? What’s up? Where’s Nat?’

‘She’s making dinner but I need to talk to you!’ Clint nodded, albeit slightly confused and still kind of worried.

‘Are we talking like someone is in imminent danger or?’

‘No! I just need your advice and help with something!’ Clint inwardly breathed a sigh of relief and clapped his hands together, before addressing Sam and Bucky, who were watching the interaction with interest.

‘Right. You heard the Kid. Pause this til I come back, ok?’

‘Screw you man, the monkey is about to make the biggest jump I’ve ever seen!’

‘Pause it Wilson, before I rip your wings off.’

‘You cant talk Bird Man.’

‘Damn it, I need to get Stark to get me a new nickname…anyway, come on Riles.’ Riley followed Clint out of the living room and out into the garden, where tey both sat on the porch stairs.

‘What’s on your mind then Squirt?’

‘Did Natasha tell you about the Mothers Day thing at my school?’

‘She mentioned something about it, why?’

‘Well…it’s in a few days and…it’s the day before…before…’

‘-before Mother’s day? Yep, I know.’

‘I was just wondering if…would it be weird if I maybe bought her a card and a present…maybe?’ Clint looked at the little girl next to him and he gave her a kind smile, seeing her hands trembling slightly with nerves. He put his larger hands over hers and pulled a silly face, which had her giggling.

‘Nah Squirt, that’s not weird at all. What were you thinking of getting her?’

‘Um…I don’t know…something good though…but I kind of don’t have any money…’

‘Which is why you wanted to talk to me, right? You need someone to finance this little trip to the mall, right and offer you the best advice in present buying?’ Riley nodded sheepishly and Clint laughed before he smiled kindly at her again.

‘Of course, it’s my job as the best Uncle to do stuff like this and also, I think it would make her super happy; I promise I won’t say anything to her. How about, I take you tomorrow after your maths class with her?’

‘Yeah! Thank you so much Uncle Clint!’

‘Anytime Kiddo.’ There was a faint yell from inside and Clint stood up, offering Riley a hand up, which she took.

‘Great. Good chat. Dinner’s ready…bet I can beat you inside!’ With that, Clint took off for the kitchen with Riley running after and giggling madly behind him.


	53. Mother's Day Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha and Riley attend the Mother's Day Party at Riley's school and there is a special surprise in store!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!  
University has been pretty mental so far, with all the COVID rules and things and deadlines, so I havent had much time to write.   
I'm aiming to update this fic once every two or three weeks - hopefully more, but that will be the minimum.   
Here's a new chapter; hope you like it!
> 
> Love   
MarvelObsessedgirl3   
xx

Natasha had been trained in hundreds of things throughout her life. She was skilled in combat and on stealth missions, she was very intelligent and prided herself on being organised and a good listener; however, currently sitting in a middle school assembly hall, with around 30 other mothers sat around her, she felt very out of her depth. It was the Mother’s Day party at Riley’s school; there were balloons everywhere, banners and streamers – all emblazoned with the words: Happy Mother’s Day, on them.

If she wasn’t a trained assassin, trained to deal with the most stressful of situations, she would have felt very overwhelmed.

Riley had informed Natasha, that she had to wait with her Drama class (which Natasha thought was strange, as Riley had told her that she was not performing); her class were about to perform a short prepared piece for the mothers.

Clint had of course offered to accompany her – even Steve had offered too, but Natasha had politely declined, after all, how difficult could a middle school party be? The answer was, very.

Already, upon arrival, Natasha had been swamped with questions and small conversations with the other mothers – most of whom she decided were arrogant and pompous – as they constantly boasted about their children or their jobs and house and whatever. The only mother that Natasha considered was not horrible like the others, she was surprised to find out was Marnie’s mother – Riley’s close friend. They had spoken for a while about the school and the Drama programme, with Natasha effortlessly talking about her fake persona: Natalie Rushmans job and life; listening politely and storing information in her head about whatever Nancy had said about her life and Marnie, for future reference, should she need it.

All of a sudden, the curtain was lifted on the stage and Riley’s class were visible – all in two lines, holding pieces of paper. Riley was nowhere to be seen and Natasha’s heart started beating anxiously, as she subtly looked around for her. Eyes darting around the children and the stage, Natasha exhaled silently, as she spotted Riley’s curly hair and pink shoes, from the other side of the curtain – she was standing off stage…why hadn’t she come back? Just as Natasha was trying to figure this out, Mr Thompson, the head Drama teacher of the class, introduced the children and what they had been preparing; then there was a loud shuffling and the children started reading out their written poems and stories in turn to the audience of mothers.

Natasha resigned herself to the fact that she was going to have to sit through this entire ordeal, without falling asleep, before the actual party started; although she couldn’t help but wonder why Riley was still standing off stage – only visible to her, due to her seating position and years of analysing crowds.

When the final child had finished their story, Mr Thompson quickly walked off stage, then came back on, with a large smile on his face.

‘Thank you to the children, who have worked very hard on their pieces. There is a little surprise now, before we begin the party, a member of the class, who was not going to perform, informed me earlier this week that they have prepared a piece that they would like to share. She is the Star of the Month and a real asset to the class. Come on out Riley!’ Natasha’s eyes widened in shock as Riley walked on stage, to join the other children. She couldn’t believe that Riley had kept this a secret from her!

The little girl looked nervous, but as soon as she spotted Natasha, she beamed and gave her a small wave, which the assassin gave her back – feeling very proud and also a bit emotional. Under the bright stage light, Natasha could just glimpse the silver bracelet on her wrist and she tried to ignore the nervous jittering of her stomach and watch what was unfolding before her eyes.

Mr Thompson passed Riley the microphone, which was very large in the 11 year old’s small hands, and Natasha gave her an encouraging smile, watching as Riley began to speak, in a confident voice, although Natasha could see a slight tremble in her hands.

_‘My mom is not like the other moms, she didn’t carry me in her tummy for 9 months, or see my first steps or hear my first word._

_My mom is not like the other moms because she didn’t know me when I was younger and she never thought that she could get to be someones mom.’ _

Natasha blinked and realised that Riley had written about her, as Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow, not Natalie Rushman, and something in Natasha’s heart broke at this realisation. She swallowed past a lump in her throat and her eyes were fixed like glue on Riley, who began talking again; the tremble in her hands was gone.

_‘My mom is not like the other moms because they don’t get to choose what their baby will look like, but my mom chose me.’ _

Thinking back to when they first met, Natasha couldn’t stop the onset of memories flood through her mind and in that moment, although there were around 30 other moms and children in the room, Natasha felt as if it was just her and Riley.

_‘My mom is like the other moms because she cares about me and makes me happy when I’m sad. My mom tells funny stories and we go to cool places together. My mom makes me feel better when I’m poorly and she helps me with my homework._

_My mom is like the other moms. My mom is the best mom in the whole wide world.’_

There was suddenly a loud round of applause and Riley grinned, as everyone clapped for her, before she jumped down off the stage and ran up to Natasha, who embraced her, feeling the proudest that she had of anyone in her life. The other children instantly followed suit, and all made their ways to their mothers, as Natasha continued to hug Riley tightly, willing herself not to break down in tears in front of everyone. Natasha felt Riley smile and the little girl looked up at her, eyes bright and full of adoration.

‘We had to write a poem, or a letter of sorts, about our moms… and I um… I didn’t know what to write or whether I should… but after we went to New York, I decided to write about you… the real you and Uncle Clint helped me – so it was personal but so no one would figure it out, that’s why it was a secret… please don’t be mad.’ Natasha immediately shook her head, realising the secrecy about Riley’s ‘hidden project’ from a few days ago, that Clint had been helping her with.

‘I’m not mad at all. I loved it. That is the nicest thing that anyone has ever done for me and it was a good secret too. Thank you, Mischief. I love you so much and I am honoured that I get to be your mom.’

‘I love you too mom and I’m glad you liked it!’ Seemingly bored of all the hugs, Natasha felt Riley pull away slightly, as her eyes strayed over to the buffet food. Natasha chuckled, knowingly.

‘Can we go and get some cake now?’ Riley asked, twisting around to watch Marnie and some of her other friends making their way to the buffet, talking animatedly to each other and their mothers and waving at Riley and Natasha to join them.

‘I don’t see why not, although if you ever leave me alone with a room full of pompous mothers again and not tell me where you’ve gone, I can’t be held responsible for my actions.’ Riley giggled, as Natasha quirked an eyebrow and the pair made their way over to the buffet, with Natasha’s heart feeling lighter than it had in years.

***

Having not been to a function like this before, there were a lot of options of things to do and after mingling for a bit, Riley and Natasha were stood in the middle of the school hall somewhat awkwardly. Riley looked up at Natasha, feeling slightly overwhelmed at all the choices and the fact that she didn’t know what to do.

‘What do we do now?’ Riley asked, slipping her hand into Natasha’s, who gave it a comforting squeeze, knowingly.

‘What do you want to do now?’ Natasha asked gently, as Riley shrugged and bit her lip, twirling her bracelet around on her wrist.

Natasha hummed for a moment, before she seemingly remembered something and tweaked Riley’s nose, making the girl smile.

‘Follow me, I have an idea – which if I remember correctly, is about to start.’

***

‘God Kid, you really are the worst dancer.’

Riley stuck her tongue out and then her eyes widened, as she accidentally stood on Natasha’s foot again, who huffed in both exasperation and amusement. The school band had arrived and were playing lots of songs for the mothers and children to dance to; despite Riley’s protests, Natasha had dragged her into the centre of the hall with the other mothers and children, to dance.

‘I never got taught how to dance!’

‘Well, this is lesson 101. No time like the present. Besides, it’s only one song where everyone has to dance.’ Riley giggled as the assassin twirled her around the school hall (as best as she could do in Natalie Rushmans disguise) to the school band’s version of Aerosmiths: _‘I don’t want to miss a thing. _

‘You’re a good dancer!’

‘I know.’

‘That’s being enotistical!’ Suppressing a smirk, Natasha quirked an eyebrow and spun the little girl around again, so she was giggling madly.

‘Egotistical? You’ve been spending too much time around Sam. And no, I am a good dancer, because I was trained to be.’ Riley tilted her head and opened her mouth to ask more about it, but Natasha quickly shook her head, giving her a small smile.

‘Now is not the time for question time, today, is about having fun and teaching you how to dance without two left feet.’ Riley frowned and then shrieked in delight as Natasha spun her around again unannounced and they both burst out laughing, as the song ended.

After a while of playing games and talking to Marnie and her mother (a playdate at Marnies house had been organised for the following week), Natasha and Riley made their way back to the Compound.

***

‘Have fun at the party?’ Clint asked, as Natasha walked into the kitchen and put her keys on the counter, with Riley running in behind her, making a beeline straight for Clint, who grunted as she launched herself at him.

‘Yeah!’

‘I take it that the surprise went well then squirt?’

‘Yep! Mom loved it! Thank you for helping me Uncle Clint!’

‘You’re welcome kiddo.’

‘It was definitely a surprise, but it was a good one. I had a lovely time.’ Natasha said, shaking her head fondly at Clint who grinned at her.

‘Good, you better get used to it all quick because you’re going to have loads more stuff like this to do.’

‘We are?’ Riley asked, trying to disguise how nervous that made her feel as she poured herself a glass of water. Clint scoffed and nodded.

‘Oh yeah! Parent’s Evenings, Charity Events at the school, productions, competitions and…oof!’ Clint massaged his ribs, where Natasha had just elbowed him, seeing Riley start to become overwhelmed again, as she sipped her water.

She knew that there would be certain events that she would be able to go to now, that she hadn’t in the past, but Riley hadn’t really thought about it before apart from the Mothers Day Party and she started to feel slightly overwhelmed at the fact that she would be expected to know what to do in all those situations, as other children would do. Natasha walked over to her and gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

‘One day at a time Barton. Riley did amazingly well today and this is all new to the both of us; but we’ve got this, right Mischief?’

‘Yep!’ Clint smiled apologetically and excused himself, as Riley turned around and hugged Natasha, who instantly held her close.

‘I’m proud of you Riles, you did so well today. We might have other events and things to go to now, as mother and daughter, but I will be with you through it all, ok? I don’t want you to worry.’ Natasha felt Riley nod into her chest and she smiled.

‘I love you mom and I’m happy you had a good time today.’ Natasha smiled and once again swallowed past a lump in her throat – never getting used to Riley saying that she loved her. It was the most amazing feeling.

‘I love you more _malyska.’_


	54. Kidnapped part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley is being looked after by Yelena - who is helping her with her Science Project, when there is a sudden intrusion that threatens their very lives.

Riley swung her legs back and forth, watching as Yelena attempted for the third time to finish constructing the wires in the back of her science project – which was meant to be a volcano, which was in pieces all over the communal living room area. It was a Saturday and all of the Avengers had left urgently to go and infiltrate a Hydra base, who’s location had been found finally, by SHIELD. Riley was meant to be finishing her Science Project with Natasha (which was bigger than her in size), however, due to the sudden mission, Yelena was helping instead and it was pretty safe to say that things were not going well.

‘Can you not wait for Tasha? This will not go together.’

‘No! She said that you would help me! It will do, you’re just not doing it right because you’re not following the instructions!’ Yelena raised an eyebrow in such a similar way to Natasha, that Riley cowered slightly and huffed.

‘But you’re not…’ Riley began, as suddenly Yelena held a hand up and grinned triumphantly, as the Volcano began to smoke.

‘I do not need them. Why can you not do this part anyway?’

‘Because mom says I’m not allowed to touch electric wires, they’re dangerous, that’s why she asked you to help.’

‘Pft. She babies you. When I was your age, I was dismantling bombs.’

‘You were?!’ Seemingly realising what she had just said, Yelena waved her hand dismissively and pointed to the paper Mache Volcano – which was now smoking largely and looked very cool.

‘Anyway. I said I did not need instructions. Was not hard. Just a few wires.’ Riley shook her head in amusement.

‘Thanks for helping! Now I just add this and it’ll be finished for when mom comes home!’ Yelena nodded and started to make her way into the kitchen to grab a drink. Riley decided to abandon the instructions like Yelena had and pour all the mixture into the top of the Volcano; as she wanted a really big explosion for later on – when it would be turned on, however, after adding all the white power into the solution, her eyes widened as the Volcano started to shake and foam an orange substance.

Yelena was in the middle of pouring herself a glass of water, when Riley’s worried voice called out to her.

‘Um…Auntie Yelena?’

‘What now?’

‘Is it…meant to be doing…that?’ Yelena frowned and walked into the living room to see the Volcano shaking and spraying orange foam from it’s top, rather violently.

‘You turned it on?! Tasha said not to!’

‘I didn’t! The button is over there! I just added the powder and the liquid stuff!’

‘All of it?’ Yelena asked in horror, as the Volcano begun to start fizzing and making a grumbling noise.

‘Maybe?’ Riley bit her lip, as Yelena picked up the instructions and read through them quick.

‘It says only a Quarter! Otherwise it will react, despite not being plugged in!’ Both of their eyes widened in fear as the Volcano started making a low rumbling sound. Riley stepped back and squealed in shock as Yelena’s hands grabbed her and pulled her behind the sofa, just as the Volcano made an ear-piercing _‘bang’_ and orange foam and smoke was expelled from the top and went everywhere.

Taking refuge behind the sofa, Riley groaned, as a burning smell filled the room and she looked at Yelena sheepishly, who snorted with laughter at what had just happened.

‘Now who is not reading instructions, hmm?’

‘Sorry.’

‘Why you need wires and button, if the solution and powder makes the bang?!’

‘Because it was going to light up the Volcano – to look really cool…’

‘Well, you can spend the rest of the afternoon trying to clean the orange off everything, whilst I figure out a good lie to tell your mother and Stark, before they murder us both and try to get rid of the smell.’ Riley groaned at this, but nodded obediently and stood up, grimacing at the large amount of orange foam everywhere.

‘Guess that’s why it was meant to be set off outside. Looked pretty awesome though! Can we make another one?’

‘боже мой.’

***

After everything was cleaned up (luckily it was quite easy to scrub off the sofa, walls and carpets), and the Volcano was salvaged by Yelena – who had quite a knack at painting and crafting, the pair could be found watching The Lion King (Riley had insisted that Yelena had to watch all the Disney films she loved) in the living room.

‘I love this part!’

‘Why can Elephant hold all those animals in song?’

‘I don’t know. It’s just a movie.’ At that moment, Yelena heard a small bang from one of the rooms down the hallway, which led to the Gym, Science Labs, Library and Music Room. It would have been inaudible to most ears, however, Yelena also had a version of the Super Soldier Serum and she could hear the tiniest of sounds…including that of footsteps.

‘Wait here. I hear someone.’ Riley looked up in confusion and fright, as Yelena suddenly stood up and stealthily made her way to the hallway door.

‘But…Friday didn’t…’

‘Friday is offline. Otherwise protocols would have kicked in. Stay here.’ Pausing the film, Riley pulled her knees to her chest, trying to calm her hammering heart down, as Yelena quickly and quietly walked out of the room.

There was complete silence for a few moments, until there was a shout and audible fighting sounds. Riley jumped down off the sofa and ran towards where Yelena had gone, hoping to help her. The sounds were coming from the Library and Riley pushed open the big wooden doors, to see Yelena fighting three men, dressed in black. Two were already on the ground, unconscious. They all held knives and were all fighting each other effortlessly – like some kind of terrifying dance.

Yelena caught sight of Riley and her eyes widened, seemingly realising something.

‘RUN! GET HELP! RUN AND DON’T LOOK BACK!’ The men looked towards Riley, who was frozen in place, her breathing erratic and the men started talking to each other.

‘Вот она!’ _(‘There she is’)_

‘Держите ее в живых’ _(‘Keep her alive’)_

‘Что тебе с ней нужно?! Она у тебя не будет!’ _(What do you want with her?! You will not have her!)_

_‘Назовем это старым долговым урегулированием, которое Наталья Романова должна’ (‘Let's call it an old debt settlement that Natalia Romanova owes.’)_

‘RUN KID!’ Jolting out of the shock, Riley turned to run away and leave, however, she saw a glint of silver in the corner of her eye. One of the men – seemingly the leader of the group, had a large weapon that was all lit up in blue and looked like a Blaster toy. Riley screamed at the sight it being pulled out of one of their pockets; aiming for Yelena, who was still ducking and dodging the knives.

‘NO! YELENA!’ There was a small bang and Yelena fell to the ground, writhing in pain, paralysed as the Blaster hit her in the side – causing blue volts of energy to spark all over her. Riley screamed in terror and started to run away as fast as she could; until she felt cold hands grab her waist and pick her up; one of the men had silently blocked her exit, catching her before she managed to leave. One of the other men, bound Yelena’s hands and fired another blast at her – this time it stuck her to the library wall, with a thick black substance, which Riley screamed at.

_‘Тихий малыш’_ (‘Quieten the Kid.’) Riley continued to scream and thrash around, kicking as hard as she could, until she felt the prick of a needle in her neck and she slumped in his grasp. The man holding her easily passed her to one of the other men and he then clutched his side, which was oozing with blood – seemingly from where Yelena had stabbed him at some point. The leader of the group smiled evilly and pocketed the blaster, nodding triumphantly at the sight of Riley and Yelena unconscious.

‘Босс будет впечатлен.’ _(‘Boss will be impressed.’)_


	55. Kidnapped Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers infiltrate a Hydra base and come back to the Compound, to find that Friday is offline and Riley and Yelena are nowhere to be found.

When Fury had told the Avengers that there was a Hydra base that had been discovered in Arizona, they expected a quick in and out mission. They had been given co-ordinates of the base and their mission was to shut it down.

‘Cap, you got eyes on Banner?!’

‘Bit busy here Tony!’ Steve threw his shield and took out three Hydra Soldiers in one go, whilst in the middle of hand to hand combat with another. Bucky ran over and aided Steve, as the rest of the team were otherwise preoccupied fighting and or scoping out the area. Natasha and Clint attempted to make their way over to the swarm of Hydra agents that were running from the bunker and they ran towards them, guns raised, easily taking them out in a matter of seconds.

Clint gave Natasha a foot up and she was able to scale the building, before pressing a button in her ear and giving a hand signal to Clint, who nodded. Tony flew overhead, blasting his repulsors at the Hydra soldiers that were stationed along the roof’s perimeter.

‘I’ve got eyes on the Hulk – he’s North East. Looks like he’s just taken out the main entrance, we’re good to go.’ Natasha reported into the comms, running to catch up with Steve and Bucky, who were on their way to the entrance, along with Sam, Clint and Wanda.

‘Back up, cover me, I’ll give the all clear when I’m inside.’ Steve said firmly, as the others nodded and huddled near him, in case of an ambush inside. Steve cautiously peered around the remains of the door and signalled for everyone to follow.

‘All clear in here, looks like that was the last of them. Stark – status report?’

‘Hungry. Can we stop at Wendy’s after here?’

‘Tony, focus.’

‘Fine, but I’m taking that as a yes, Capsicle.’

‘All clear out here now, I’m on my way down.’ A moment later, the Ironman suit flew down and joined the others who were in the inside of the main base, looking around at the rubble, broken computers and large piles of confidential documentation. Steve nodded and sighed a breath of relief, before addressing the team, who looked equally relieved.

‘Great, good job guys. Natasha, Clint, wire the hard-drive up and back up all the data that you can if anything is salvageable; Sam, scout around for anything that we might have missed. Bucky, get Banner and meet us back at the Jet in half an hour. Tony you can…Tony?’ By this point, Tony had stepped out of his suit and had moved away from the group; he was standing frowning at his phone.

‘Hang on. I think I’ve got something wrong with Friday, Cap.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Well I tried to access the secure server for Friday in the suit, but it won’t work and now my phone isn’t either. It’s like it’s somehow just gone offline. I can’t sort it remotely, I need to do that in the lab. There must be some sort of glitch back at the Compound.’ Natasha and Clint continued working, not worried, as they had checked in via a quick phonecall with Yelena and Riley only an hour or so ago. Steve waved a hand dismissively.

‘I’m sure it’s all fine. Let’s wrap up here and head back guys.’ Everyone nodded and went to attend to their commanded duties.

***

‘-no all I’m saying is, that I don’t see why we couldn’t get Wendy’s for dinner.’

‘…because it’s Sam’s turn to cook dinner.’

‘Yeah and Riley’s looking forward to the enchiladas.’

‘Riley or you Barton?’

‘Wow, didn’t ask to be personally attacked Natasha.’ Clint put his hand on his heart and feigned an injury, as Natasha rolled her eyes and walked into the communal living room, along with the rest of the team, some of whom started to make their way up to their own floors. Her eyes suddenly narrowed and quickly surveyed the empty room.

‘Riley and Yelena aren’t here.’

‘They’re probably just playing a game somewhere. Shame we can’t ask Friday.’

‘On it. Shouldn’t take too long to reboot her.’ Tony called, walking down the corridor to his lab, with Bruce who offered to have a look. Clint looked over at the Volcano which looked complete, however, there were orange stains on one side. Natasha followed his eyeline and her eyes fell onto the TV which was paused on the Lion King.

‘Where are they?’ Clint asked, slightly more concerned now, as Natasha frowned.

‘I don’t know. Yelena’s phone is on the coffee table. She never goes anywhere without it.’ Sam waved a hand dismissively and started on dinner.

‘They’re probably outside or something.’

‘No, they can’t be, as Friday isn’t working, so the doors would be locked…can anyone else hear that?’ Everyone turned around to look at Natasha, who was listening intently, seemingly hearing something. Then they all heard it – a very faint banging and muffled noise, coming from somewhere near the living room.

‘What is that?’ Wanda asked, her eyes flashing red, as Natasha immediately pulled out her gun. She then made her way out of the living room and down the other corridor, leading towards the gym and the library, followed by the rest of the team.

The noise led them to the library door and Natasha’s heart dropped in her chest as she saw scratch marks on the door. Without waiting for a signal, she slammed open the door and ran inside, gun ready to fire, before she stopped in horror. Everyone instantly followed and then they all saw where Natasha was looking; Yelena was pinned to a wall, with a thick black substance, unable to speak, or move, except to move her feet – which explained the banging; there was also blood on the floor.

‘Yelena?!’ Natasha, Bucky and Clint ran forward to her, as Steve, Sam and Wanda scanned the area for any potential hostile threat, immediately seeing the smashed window at the top of the third floor.

‘What the fuck happened?! What’s all this blood?!’

‘What is this stuff on her?’

‘Get it off her and someone find Riley. NOW!’ Clint and Wanda ran out of the room to find Riley and get Tony. After a while, no amount of trying to cut through the substance worked and not even Tony or Bruce knew what it was; they were waiting on a sample analysis in order to be able to get it off Yelena, who had fallen unconscious.

Natasha tried to slow her breathing and focus on one thing at a time, when finally Clint and Wanda came back, with Tony holding a small vial of clear liquid. Natasha looked between them, her eyes landing on her best friend, who wore a grave expression.

‘Where’s the Kid?’

‘…Nat, we can’t find her.’ Tony started slowly pouring the liquid onto the black substance and it started to dissolve from Yelena’s unconscious form, freeing from her skin and from the wall.

‘Well, she must be hiding. Look again.’ Steve caught Yelena before she hit the ground and bridal carried her onto the small sofa in the corner of the library, as Tony ran a hand down his face and looked at Natasha with a saddened expression.

‘She isn’t hiding. I managed to fix Friday – she’d been hacked into from a secure location that I can’t find and apparently…she says that Riley isn’t in the Compound.’ Natasha shook her head and tried to focus on breathing normally. At that moment, Wanda managed to use her powers to wake Yelena and she woke up groggily before spotting Natasha, who instantly was at her side.

‘Where’s Riley? What happened?’

‘…watching film…heard a…a noise…they took her. Riley is gone. They’ve got her. They're back. I couldn’t…couldn’t stop them. I’m so sorry Natalia.’ Natasha felt the exact moment that her heart stopped and she swallowed past a sudden urge to be sick.

‘Who? Who’s got her?’

‘The Red Room.’


	56. Kidnapped Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley wakes up and the Avengers realise the extent of the situation when a video message appears

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!  
I've decided to do a 4 or 5 part to the kidnapping story!  
Next update will be in the next week or so!  
Thanks for reading
> 
> MarvelObsessedgirl3  
xx

Riley blinked her eyes open and groaned when a wave of nausea fell over her, as she sat up, before looking around in confusion from the cold tiled floor – trying to gather her thoughts into something logical, as she felt very sick.

Looking around, she saw that she was in a small grey room that had no windows or decorations, or anything. Completely empty and cold. All the events suddenly came back to her and she felt a lump form in her throat at the thought of what had happened both to Yelena and to herself. She had been kidnapped and nobody knew where she was… and Yelena was dead. Breathing quickly, Riley realised that whoever had taken her, wanted her for a reason and she wasn’t about to stick around and find out what it was. Opening her palms, she was horrified to find that her powers were not working. At all. Whoever took her, must have given her something to dampen them – maybe that was why she felt so sick, she wondered.

‘LET ME OUT! TAKE ME BACK!’ Riley screamed, jumping up and hammering on the door loudly, until her fists hurt. All of a sudden, there was a sound of voices and of a key in a lock and Riley backed into the wall opposite, breathing heavily, as fear overtook her.

The door swung open to reveal a muscular man, who was wearing a black outfit and was holding a gun; he muttered something to his right and another man peered in and nodded, before walking away. The man with the gun looked at Riley, who glared at him, before he walked over to her and gave her a dangerous smile, talking in English, although his voice had a heavy Russian accent – even more so than Yelena did.

‘You will come with me.’ He started to walk out of the room, when Riley crossed her arms and sat back down on the floor.

‘No. I won’t.’ This was seemingly the wrong thing to say, as in a matter of seconds, the man turned around and walked quickly towards her, before he grabbed her by her wrist and pulled her behind him. Riley was startled at his sudden movements and by his strength and she started screaming again, pulling away as much as she could.

‘Shut up, you little brat.’ The man turned to her and slapped her around the face, hard enough to leave a red mark and Riley immediately fell silent, as tears made their way down her cheeks. He smirked satisfactorily and Riley allowed herself to be pulled after the man, as they made their way down corridors and corridors – no windows anywhere, just blood red carpets and lots of closed doors.

Suddenly, he opened a steel door to the right and pushed her inside. She quickly stood up and looked at the man, realising that she was in some sort of medical place, although all the weapons surrounding the walls made her rethink this quickly.

‘I want to go home. Take me back.’ He laughed, a low laugh that made Riley’s skin crawl.

‘No, my dear, you see, we have business to attend to, and you are a big part of that.’ Riley screamed again as the man picked her up roughly and all but threw her into a chair in the middle of the room, as she continued to scream and cry, before tying her to it with thick rope. He then began to pick up various things from around the room and two more men entered, closing the door behind them as they awaited instructions.

‘Your struggles are useless, the rope is specially made. Now, we are going to have a little fun.’ Riley continued to thrash around as much as she could, whilst the man approached her holding something behind his back. He pulled them out and Riley screamed so loud that she thought her throat might explode.

It was a knife and an electric collar.

***

Yelena had been taken to the Medbay, whilst the rest of the Avengers combed through security footage prior to the incident and also tried to find out where the secure location was that had hacked into Friday.

It was now Day 2 around 4am and they had come to dead end after dead end. Everyone’s morale was low, but they all refused to stop searching for Riley. When Yelena was cleared from medical, she also came down to Tony’s lab to help.

The Avengers who were good at tech and hacking, stayed with Tony in his lab, whilst the others either sat in silence, waiting for news or went to the gym to take out their frustrations on boxing bags.

After another dead end, Natasha slammed her fist down on the table and swore under her breath. Steve walked over and rubbed her shoulder, sighing heavily, as he looked over at her.

‘We’ll find her Nat.’

‘You can’t promise that.’ She snapped back, venom in her voice, although it wasn’t aimed at Steve.

‘I know, but we will do our best. Everything in our powers to get her back and to hold those responsible, accountable.’

‘-and by accountable, he means dead.’ Tony called, from the other side of the lab, as the others nodded in agreement.

‘Is my fault.’ Yelena said stoically, as Natasha sat back down next to her and started hacking into yet another secure server that Friday had recommended.

‘No. You couldn’t have done anything to stop it. There was too many of them. I’ve become too reliant on Tony’s software, I should have expected something like this to happen – I forget with how good it is, that it can still be hacked into easily, if the right people do it; although I thought if anything like this would happen, that it would be Hydra not the Red Room, seeing as I burnt it down years ago.’

‘They are like Hydra. Cut one head off and another two grow back. They rebuilt. Hard part is finding where, but we will.’ Natasha nodded in agreement and everyone continued to work in a tense silence, until Friday suddenly spoke up, gaining everyone’s attention.

_‘Incoming Video From Secure Location.’ _Instantly, Tony shouted for everyone to come over and they all ran over to the main computer where he was sat. Natasha’s eyes locked onto the screen, as Tony spoke up again.

‘Open it and track it Friday; find anything that you can about where this came from.’

_‘Of course Boss. Video message is now playing.’_

They all gasped together as the video started to play and screaming filled the room. The camera panned to Riley, who was strapped to a chair in what looked like a torture room, in her underwear and wearing what looked to be an electric collar. Her body had scattered bruises and cuts, needle marks and burns on it and Natasha swallowed past a mouthful of bile, as she screamed and sobbed. The camera then panned to a woman, who smiled dangerously at the camera, along with three men – one of who, Natasha remembered and her stomach flipped.

‘Friday, facial recognition – find everything about who these people are.’ Tony muttered, as the woman started talking.

_‘Hello Natalia. You are hard woman to find, but we always do in the end. As you can see, we have something that belongs to you. You betrayed the Red Room in the highest possible way and you must be punished. What better way to punish you, than to take your newly adopted daughter from you and turn her into the next best Widow? First, as you can see, we are breaking her in, as she has been very un-co-operative and that will not stand here, as you remember. Her powers are interesting, had we not figured it out when she arrived and tried to cause an earthquake, whilst unconscious, we would have all been dead. The collar, as you can see, stops her being able to use her powers and soon enough, they will cease completely. Riley, would you like to say anything to the Avengers?’ _

The camera spun around to Riley again, who was still screaming, as one of the men flicked a switch and the collar lit up, causing the little girl to scream louder and her entire body started to jolt, before she threw up down herself and then passed out, her head lolling to the side, as her body continued to jolt.

_‘Well, she is a bit pre-occupied at the moment. Never mind. Do not bother trying to find her, you will not succeed. I think we will keep sending these messages, just to show you our progress with her. It must hurt you, to know that there is nothing you can do about it. Goodbye for now.’ _The woman smiled again and the video ended.

The room fell into an uneasy silence, some were openly crying and others looked mutinous; but before anyone could say anything, Natasha ran out of the lab and to the bathroom, making it just in time to throw up all the contents of her stomach, until there was just bile and she was dry heaving. Tears streamed down her face and she stood up and punched the mirror, which shattered around her – much like her entire world had just done, before she then slid down the wall of the bathroom and cried, feeling her heart break.

After a while, Natasha vaguely heard footsteps running towards the bathroom, before a loud knocking started and Clint’s voice called out to her.

‘Nat! Friday’s just found a lead! We think we know who that woman is and where she might be!’ Natasha pushed the door open and neither of them spoke about the shattered mirror or the smell of vomit, apart from an understanding smile from Clint.

‘We’re going to get her back, Nat. She will be ok, she’s a tough Kid.’ Natasha nodded and composed herself as he held his hand out, which Natasha took as she stood up and took a deep breath, her mind immediately back in mission mode.

‘Who’s the woman and where is she?’

‘She was trained in the Red Room with Yelena, but was in the lower classes, which is why Yelena didn’t remember her in the video and recognised the guards instead. Her last known sighting was in an old warehouse in Karelia, Russia. Everyone is already suiting up and Tony is running Friday through all the surveillance in the state and everything to try to find her.’ Natasha nodded, as they took the elevator up to their floors.

‘Let’s go and kill this bitch and get my Kid back.'


	57. Rebirth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers hit a dead end and Riley's troubles go from bad to worse.  
Natasha realises what fate has in store for her adopted daughter.

Pain.

So much pain.

Blood.

Screaming.

This occurred for what seemed like weeks, but in reality, it was only a couple of days. Two days of continuous beatings, knife cuts, injections, shocks and burns. Riley felt like she was being torn apart, mentally and physically. A few days ago…hours? She had been told that the Avengers had been sent a video of her progress – of how she was being ‘broken in’, but after a while of keeping hope, Riley was beginning to wonder if she would ever be found.

After another nightmare, Riley woke up, whimpering with the pain of the healing welts on her body. She didn’t know the time or the day, just that she was in the same ‘room’, and was still strapped to the chair. She had never felt more trapped.

She looked down at the electric collar, that was around her neck and at her clothes that were covered in vomit and blood and she stifled a small sob at the thought that the Avengers still hadn’t found her. How long would she be here for and where _was_ here?

The door opened suddenly and the man who had been torturing her walked in, gun in hand. Riley flinched away from him, when he purposefully walked over to her and grabbed her by her hair, pulling harshly.

‘NO! GET AWAY FROM ME!’

‘Shut up you brat, or I will make you shut up.’ He hissed at the little girl, as he let go of her hair and started rummaging through some steel drawers, before he pulled out a large needle and some liquid in a bottle.

‘Wh…what’s that?’ Riley asked, cursing herself as her voice wobbled; the man smirked.

‘This, will help you to forget your previous life and will help you to accept your new one, here.’

‘No…no please! I don’t wanna forget! Let me go! I don’t want a new life here!’

‘That is unfortunate.’ A voice suddenly said from by the door and Riley turned to see the woman from a few days ago standing there, her eyes surveying her…calculating.

‘Please…I want to go home!’ The woman sighed and walked into the room, closing the door, before she stood a little bit away from Riley and took the needle and bottle from the soldier.

‘You are home now dear. This is your new home and you will learn how we do things here. This…’ she gestured to the bottle and needle, as Riley felt a few tears trickle down her face.

‘-will help you to adjust. Clearly the method we have been using, have not worked as well as we would have liked. This, will help. Just close your eyes, it will be over soon.’

‘No…no more please…I’ll do whatever you want…just please don’t…don’t hurt me again!’ In a flash, the man pricked her neck with the syringe and the liquid trickled into her body. Riley fell unconscious once more, her last vision was of the smiling face of the woman and a video camera being pointed at her.

***

Despite Tony’s best efforts, the Avengers had once again reached a dead end. They had immediately flown out to Karelia in Russia, where Friday had located the woman in an abandoned warehouse, however, it had been a dead end. No traces of any human life, the entire building was empty and Friday had no more leads. Natasha swore loudly, kicking the wall with her foot, as she put her head in her hands, trying to keep her breath level, when Friday – from inside Tony’s suit, started speaking.

_‘Incoming recorded video message from a secure location, Boss.’_

‘Play it.’

The video formed into a holograph in the middle of the room, almost lifelike and the Avengers watched as the woman spoke to Riley and the man injected her with a clear liquid against her will. Yelena and Natasha gasped as they realised what the liquid was and it was at that moment that Yelena lost it, as the video cut out, with the woman smiling evilly at them from the recording.

‘Was that…?’

‘Yes.’

‘But how did they get that? You destroyed it all when you left, no?’

‘Obviously not.’

‘Is Riley dea…’

‘No, but she would be better off dead, if I’m right in what I think is happening to her.’

‘Is anyone going to clue us in here?’ Tony asked, as they all watched Yelena and Natasha talk to each other. Yelena turned to them, her face grim, as Natasha stood stoic, her jaw clenched.

‘Red Room made a serum, it was used on the girls to help forget past lives. Main focus is only Red Room; killing, ballet, methods and such. They use it on your Kid to forget you.’ Everyone took this information in and nobody said anything, as the gravity of the situation deafened the room.

‘Will she survive it?’ Steve asked quietly, as Natasha nodded.

‘She will. However, to my knowledge, they have never injected an enhanced person before with it. I have no idea what it will do to her powers, let alone her mind. It’s a timebomb now. I know what they are going to do with her and I would rather she be dead, than what they are going to do to her.’

‘What? What are they going to do?’ Wanda asked, her hands flaming red, as everyone turned back to Natasha, as she gave them a grave look.

‘They want to get back at me for betraying them and turning to SHIELD. They want to turn Riley against me, not just that, they want it to personally hurt me…I think that they are going to turn her into the next Black Widow.’

***

It was the music that woke her up. A beautiful haunting piano melody that could be heard faintly and Riley blinked open her eyes, confused as to what had happened, until it all came flooding back. She looked around the room and was surprised to see that she was no longer in her cell or the room with the chair, rather, she was in a large room with at least 10 other beds, all perfectly made, and not one speck of dust out of place. She sat up and looked down at her body, once again, confused that she no longer had hardly any injuries from the previous days. She had no idea where she was or where she had come from, everything was very hazy. Whilst trying to remember anything that could help her, suddenly the door opened and a familiar woman entered, with a calculating look on her face and a small smile.

‘How are you feeling?’ Riley looked at the woman and contemplated this, before deciding on an answer.

‘I…I feel quite good. Sorry, but… where am I? I seem to have forgotten…everything…I thought…was it a dream…I was taken, from somewhere?’

‘You were saved my dear and you have been accepted into my institution, where you will become a valued member. My name is Svetlana, but you will call me Madame.’ Riley nodded, accepting this answer, as she then frowned.

‘I can’t remember…what…what’s my name and where am I?’

‘Your name, is Nova and I will show you, if you would follow me.’ The woman gestured for the girl to stand up, as she did so, she looked down and saw that she was dressed in a black dress and shoes and smelt very clean. She blinked and followed Svetlana, as they walked down multiple corridors and finally ended up walking down long stairs – which led into a large ballroom of sorts. It was very large and Riley could see lots of girls doing ballet in the room, accompanied by a man playing a grand piano. Svetlana turned to her and smiled as Riley looked back at her with her blue eyes completely blank and uncomprehending. A shadow of her former self.

‘You are in the Red Room and you are going to be the next Black Widow.’


	58. A Storm is brewing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nova starts her training in the Red Room, but will something make her remember who she really is?  
Natasha reaches breaking point and the Avengers won't give up on her or Riley.

‘Again.’ Came Madame Svetlana’s voice, as Nova and the other girls begun their ballet piece for what seemed like the fiftieth time that day. Nova had no memory of how she knew ballet or how she had completely healed from her wounds (that apparently came from her previous life, which she was saved from); but she knew that she felt rather odd, but she couldn’t pinpoint why. After Svetlana had given her a tour of the Red Room – she had been given the school schedule and had been told to dress in ballet unform. She had been given a new wardrobe of clothes and despite her protests, had had her hair cut, so that it no longer draped down her back, but was just over sihoulder length.

Nova found herself in the depth of the schedule of the Red Room rather quickly, and over the next few days, she became used to the rigorous training schedule; although she could not escape the nightmares that she would dream at night, always a woman with red hair and no name would save her, but Nova would wake up and would be cuffed to a bed, in a room of 10 other girls, feeling very alone and confused. Madame said that they were just dreams and not to pay them any thought, so Nova ignored the nightmares and despite feeling constantly tired and hungry – due to the rations they gave them, she gave herself fully to the programme.

She found that whenever her mind drifted to her past, she would feel a pain of sorts in her head, so she learnt not to think of it; besides she had been saved from injury and had been accepted in a prestigious institution, where she would be an amazing asset to the academy.

‘Nova! Come here.’ Nova quickly walked over to Svetlana and bowed her head obediently.

‘You are progressing well. Perform it as a solo in front of the class.’ Nova nodded and walked purposefully into the centre of the room and begun her ballet piece, as the other girls watched.

With every plie, twirl and leap, Svetlana’s evil smile grew bigger and bigger; noticing that Riley had been trained in sorts from Natasha and the Avengers, at least in ballet and possibly gymnastics, she knew that Riley would be able to progress quickly and nobody noticed the videocamera that she had set up in the corner, its red light flickering softly as it recorded.

***

It had been a week and the recordings were coming in on a regular daily basis, but Friday and the Avengers had had no luck in pinpointing where Riley was being kept. After watching the ballet video and then another video of Riley training with knives, Natasha finally lost it and she grabbed Yelena by the throat and pinned her to the wall in the Conference room at the Compound, to everyone’s surprise.

‘Where is she?’ Natasha hissed, as Yelena narrowed her eyes at her, but did not strike her.

‘How I know? We are looking, are we not?’

‘You expect me to believe that you show up and a less than a month later, you spend a day with my Kid and she is taken and you’re not involved?’

‘-Natasha…’

‘Shut up Tony. Answer me Yelena.’

‘Tasha, I do not know. Have your little witch read my mind if you not believe me.’ Natasha tightened her grip on Yelena’s throat, as Clint stepped forwards and put a hand on Natasha’s shoulder, but she threw it off angrily.

‘Nat…’

‘-No! She knows something, she has to. We can’t just stop looking!’

‘Natasha, no-one said we’re going to stop looking. We just need to try and look from a different angle.’ Sam’s voice seemed to placate Natasha slightly, until Yelena tried to move and Natasha continued glaring at her, her hand around her throat.

‘I am done playing nice. If you do not tell me where my daughter is, I swear to God, I will kill you right now and I wouldn’t even blink.’

Steve and Tony were looking worriedly at the scene in front of them, as Wanda used her powers and interrupted.

‘She’s telling the truth Natasha! She doesn’t know! She just knows that Svetlana is the woman who was responsible. You’re angry, look, we all are but this is not helping. Put Yelena down and help us find Riley, she needs you!’ Something sparked in Natasha’s eyes, but it was gone briefly. She retracted her hand and stormed out of the room, leaving everyone in an uncomfortable silence as they watched her go.

‘Well…I’m all for free entertainment, but I think I’m going to stick with cable.’ Tony muttered, as he continued typing into his computer, for new leads. Steve sighed and continued routing through a mound of paperwork on the Red Room, helped by Clint, Sam and Bucky, as Wanda went to check on Yelena, who had sat in the corner, her eyes fixed on the floor.

‘Are you ok? Natasha is just angry, not at you, she just wants Riley back…we all do.’

‘I am fine. I understand. I am new, Natasha points finger at me, as I was last one with Riley. But I not lie, I really not know where she is.’ Wanda nodded and gave a weak smile, before gesturing to a spare computer.

‘Come on, I could use your hacking skills.’

‘Hey! I’m better at it!’ Tony said indignantly, as Wanda rolled her eyes at him.

‘Obviously, but Yelena doesn’t brag about it 24/7.’

‘Point taken.’

***

Nova woke up to the sound of clanging and she shifted slightly in bed, when the handcuffs were removed and dropped a hair bobble down the side by accident. She could only go under the bed to pick it up, as the beds were bolted to the floor. Svetlana said that they had rebuilt this establishment, as there was a fire a while ago, but they managed to salvage most of the furniture. Crawling under the bed, Nova then saw a small engraving on the inside of one of the wooden slats in her bed; not visible to the eye unless you were looking up at it. It read two words, two words that caused Nova to freeze.

_Natalia Romanova_

Frowning as she traced the etched words gently, Nova felt as if she had heard that name before…as if in a dream. That was when everything flooded back to her. Images and memories circled her mind as a gasp left her lips. Her head spun and ached, but this time, she didn’t push it all back, she allowed it to happen and slowly but surely, the fogginess and the numbness in her mind begun to clear. The woman in her dreams who saved her, the woman who she had come to know as a mother, it was Natalia Romanova…Natasha Romanoff and she had been happy with her…until the men came and kidnapped her. She was not Nova; she was Riley Ford…Riley Rushman…Riley Romanoff and she had been kidnapped; taken to the Red Room.

Fear, sadness and anger suddenly pooling in her stomach, Riley crawled out from under the bed and stood up, ignoring the pain in her head, as her hands begun to pulsate with blue energy, to the horror of the girls in the bedroom.

***

Natasha punched again and again, each hit harder than the last, as she tried to calm down. As the days wore on, her resolve begun to crumble and she felt completely hopeless. The Red Room were clever, stealthy and quiet. They could take down an entire city in one night and nobody would see them coming; that was why it was so hard to find a place that essentially does not exist – only an elite few know of the location and unfortunately for the Avengers, none of them were with them. Natasha knew that Yelena didn’t know where Riley was, she just felt so helpless and wanted to take it out on someone; guilt filled her stomach and she punched harder, briefly realising that the door to the gym opened, almost soundlessly.

‘I thought I’d scared you off.’ Natasha said, not missing a punch, as Yelena walked into the gym and shrugged, before wrapping her hands.

‘No. I understand. You are angry and want someone to blame. I am not enemy Natasha.’ Natasha stopped punching and wiped her brow, turning to face Yelena with an apologetic look.

‘I know you’re not. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have acted like that, I just don’t understand how we can have nothing to go on. It’s been a week, Riley…anything could have happened to her.’

‘She still alive. Videos show that. We keep looking. They will slip and we will be there when they do.’ Natasha sat down and put her head in her hands.

‘I have no idea where she is. I’ve tracked every known base that the Red Room had, even SHIELD is working on it too and nothing. I’m starting to think we won’t ever find her. I feel like I’ve let her down. This is all my fault. After the fire…I thought it was all over…guess not.’ Yelena shook her head and sat down near Natasha.

‘We will find her. Like Stark said, we need new angle. Is there anyone else we can contact?’

‘We’ve been through everyone who me and you both know have connections to the Red Room. All the known bases, the contacts…everything.’ Yelena opened her mouth to answer, when all of a sudden Friday spoke up, although it was with Tony’s voice.

‘Natasha! Blondie! Get your asses back up here and suit up, we’ve got a new lead! Northern China. A huge storm has just been reported, coming from up in the mountains. It runs the same wavelengths as her powers did when I tested them last month. Worth a shot!’ Natasha gave Yelena a rare smile and they both ran up to the Conference room. 

***

In hindsight, Riley should have come up with a proper plan. After all her memories had come back, she realised that her powers were dampened and she felt rather hazy and sick; but she couldn’t stop her powers from beginning to appear in her hands, as she shook with the emotions that coursed through her. The door slammed open and Svetlana stood there with two guards – one of who she remembered as the one who had tortured her on the first two days.

‘Girls out, now. Nova? What are you doing?’

‘My name is not Nova. MY NAME IS RILEY AND I WANT TO GO HOME!’ The little girl screamed, as her powers suddenly exploded around her and caused the weather outside to darken and lightning to start; alongside torrential rain.

‘I see that your little memory lapse has faded. We did wonder if it would happen with your abnormalities.’ Svetlana said calmly, as if they were discussing the weather, looking at Riley’s clenched blue hands.

‘Take. Me. Back.’ She spat, as the weather worsened and Svetlana’s hand gripped something in her waist band, smiling evilly at her.

‘Oh no my dear. We succeeded once before, we shall do it again, we will just increase your dose, unfortunately, the next dosage cannot be given until tomorrow, as it has not been a full week since the first dosage yet, we would not want you to die from an overdose after all. Also, I would watch your powers, if I were you.’ Riley frowned, as Svetlana pulled out a small remote, pointing it at Riley, before she pressed a button on it and the little girl screamed in agony, as her neck burned when a large electric current ran through her suddenly; causing her powers to instantly recede.

‘You didn’t think that we would just let you walk around without a contingency plan, should the dosage fail, did you? We injected an electric chip, on the first dosage, controlled by this remote.’ Riley screamed again and again, as Svetlana continued pressing the voltage higher and higher, until the girl passed out and crumpled on the floor.

‘Take her back to the chair. She needs reminding of how we do things here.’ Svetlana demanded of the guards, who obliged and picked Riley up, taking her back to the torture room and strapping her into the chair.

Riley jolted awake with a scream as her neck burned once more and an electric current ran through her body.

‘You will learn how we do things here and you will obey, or you will die.’

‘No! I don’t wanna stay here! I want my mommy! Please let me go home!’ Riley started crying as she tried to get out of the chair, to no avail, as Svetlana laughed, picking up a large whip.

‘You will obey, one way or the other. They all do in the end.’

‘NO! I WANT TO GO H…HOME!’

‘You are home and you will learn.’ There was a loud sound of a whip cracking and blinding pain, as Riley screamed.


	59. Strategy Rescue mission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers arrive in Northern China to find and rescue Riley, but are they too late?

Sitting on the Quinjet, Natasha sat by herself in the back, absentmindedly throwing a knife up and down in her hand. Friday had given them the co-ordinates of the surprise storm, and it was a waiting game now, until they arrived in Northern China. It was usually a 12 hour flight, but due to Tony’s fast technology in the Quinjet, it would take them 10; but for everyone, it was 10 hours too many. Natasha had told everybody that she wanted some time to herself and despite trying to talk to her, everyone knew better than to push her, when she wanted to be alone.

She couldn’t help her stomach from feeling uneasy whenever she thought about what they were doing to Riley at that very moment; all she knew, was that whenever she thought back to seeing Riley in an all too familiar black ballet uniform on the video recording, performing perfectly in front of a room of girls, that she had failed as a mother. She had promised to protect her, but she had failed. This couldn’t be another dead end…it just couldn’t be. It had been over a week since Riley had been missing and Natasha didn’t think that she could bare another dead end.

‘Nat? Yelena? You’ve both got experience with how the students will attack and what they will do. Any thoughts?’ Steve’s voice broke through Natasha’s thoughts and she turned to face him and the rest of the team, willing herself not to break down. She needed to focus.

‘Back entrance is best bet.’ Yelena commented idly, checking that her weapons were in their holsters in her new uniform – made specially by Tony.

‘Tony, can Friday find that?’

‘Capsicle, you’re asking if a multibillion-dollar A.I can find a back door? Yeah.’ Steve sighed and nodded, rubbing a hand down his face, before addressing Natasha, who had shifted instantly into mission mode and was thinking quickly and strategically.

‘Just checking. Natasha? Any ideas?’

‘The students have a specific skill set. Knife training, combat in all areas, intelligence, stealth and yes, gun training, amongst other things. Do not engage unless necessary. An army of widows could take out a whole city in one night and nobody would ever see it coming. Luckily, by the look of the videos, it looks as if we are still dealing with students who are not due to graduate for a few years. However, they are being trained to kill and will not hesitate, also the guards will be trained effectively too, they will attack to kill. Do not give them a reason to gain the upper hand on you.’

‘Great. So, we’ve got a small army of murderous children and their handlers on our hands.’ Sam muttered, as Wanda hit him upside the head, muttering about insensitive comments.

‘I first killed when I was 7.’ Natasha said icily, as a sudden tense silence fell on the group.

‘I was 9.’ Yelena added and she took a deep breath, before sitting down. Steve stood up and adjusted his shield, before speaking clearly and with purpose.

‘Ok. Back entrance. Quiet and quick is the best strategy. Tony; Sam, we need eyes from above. Wanda, you will keep watch with Bucky and Clint by the front and back entrances from a safe vantage point. Bruce, you will stay here, in-case we need a quick getaway – analysing all the cameras and areas around, if they try to take Riley away. I will go with Natasha and Yelena and find Riley. Everyone has their own tranquilisers to use on the students, rather than killing them, yes? Questions?’ Everyone nodded and then shook their head and Steve nodded, as Friday announced the dissent. Tony joined them and clapped his hands together.

‘Avengers. Time to work for a living.’ 

***

To put it simply, the strategy went rather well, until one of the Red Room students saw that Steve, Natasha and Yelena sneaking down the corridors and had alerted the rest of the school and by extension, the guards. A full out battle had then started, with the other members of the Avengers entering the building immediately to help. Natasha managed to peel herself away from the fight and ran down corridor after corridor, trying to find Riley to no avail.

Pushing door after door open, and killing or tranquilising whoever stood in her way, Natasha finally reached a long dark staircase, where she arrived in a long corridor, colder than the rest of the school, due to its location. Slipping down the corridor silently, Natasha reached the only door at the end and pushed it open, revealing a pungent smell of urine and of burnt flesh. The light came on, when the door opened and it revealed a cell like room and in the middle of it, was Riley.

Natasha froze as her eyes fell on her adoptive daughter, who was unconscious, chained to the wall with shackles that had made her wrists and ankles bleed. They had put a large collar on her of some kind and the faint burning smell immediately made Natasha realise what it was. An electric collar. Her clothes or lack thereof, where in a crumpled heap on the floor and all the little girl was wearing was a medical gown, saturated in blood and other fluids. By the looks of things, Riley had been in the room for a while and had been frequently beaten by the guards…tortured.

The look of her daughter in this form made her want to throw up; however, Natasha shook the thoughts away and immediately ran to her, pulling at the chains fruitlessly. They were too strong.

‘Nat? Are you down here? Did you find…’ Clint and Wanda appeared in the doorway and gasped as they took in the sight of Riley. In all the commotion, Natasha did not realise that they had managed to follow her and she turned to them for help, putting her gun that had immediately pointed at them, down.

‘The…the chains…I can’t…’ Clint opened his mouth to answer, when he instead turned his head and suddenly swore and backed out of the room. Natasha then heard gun shots and more fighting. The guards had also followed them down here by the look of things.

‘Let me.’ Wanda said determinedly, her hands lighting up with red tendrils as the chains were then broken and removed from Riley. Natasha gave her a grateful nod, as she caught the child’s fragile body, still unconscious. Reaching frantically for a pulse, Natasha held back a sigh of relief as a small, but steady pulse thumped under her fingers. Wanda looked around the cell like room with disgust, her face saddened as she remembered how horrible it was to be tortured and left for dead – back when she was held captive by Hydra.

‘She’s alive.’ Natasha breathed as Wanda nodded in relief. Natasha cradled Riley close to her and willed the tears not to fall.

‘Мой бедный ребенок, что они с тобой сделали?’ _(‘My poor baby, what have they done to you?’)_

‘I will keep watch.’ Wanda said quietly, as Natasha shook her head and lifted the little girl into her arms as she stood up, making sure not to jostle her too much or touch any of her larger wounds.

‘No need. The Kid needs a medic now. We are leaving.’ Wanda nodded focused on Riley; they made their way out of the room carefully with Natasha holding Riley in one arm and a gun in the other. They were joined a moment later by Clint, who yelled down the corridor.

‘Stark and the others will deal with Svetlana; they’ve got her and her main guards holed up in the main room upstairs.’ Natasha gently pushed a stray curl from Riley’s sweaty cheek and her fingers lightly brushed over a large bruise under her eye, as they arrived at the end of the corridor. Natasha looked at her best friend and gestured to Riley.

‘Clint, would you take her to the Quinjet? There is some business I need to attend to before we leave.’ Nodding instantly, Clint took her from Natasha’s grasp and carried the little girl up the stairs, followed by the other two.

They made their way quickly up the stairs and into the main room of the building, where Svetlana and the two guards were tied up in the centre of the room, surrounded by the rest of the team. The room had blood splattered on the wooden floor in places and around them, lay unconscious students. There were traces of the same black substance that had captured Yelena a week prior, however, Tony and Bruce had created a remedy for this and Natasha was relieved to see that none of the team were badly injured or captured.

‘I’ve made some calls and Fury has sent out a squad to deal with things here.’ Natasha nodded at Tony, her eyes focused on Svetlana, who despite having a dislocated shoulder by the looks of things, was smiling evilly at her.

‘Natalia Romanova. We meet at last.’ Natasha’s eyes narrowed and she raised a perfect eyebrow, not trusting herself to speak, as her fingers tightened on her gun.

‘Don’t start with the pleasantries. You tortured a little girl, abused her mentally and physically and for what? To get back at me for deferring from the Red Room?’

‘To some extent yes. Hurting something you care about, hurts you and therefore, it was the most effective strategy.’ Anger flashed in Natasha’s eyes, but her voice was calm.

‘But she surprised you with her powers, didn’t she? You were not expecting that. One thing still confuses me about all this. How did you even find out about Riley?’

‘Knowledge is power and we had the knowledge.’ The whole team watched as Svetlana laughed and the guards smiled evilly.

‘Hate to interrupt, but none of this strikes me as funny.’ Sam spat, as the rest of the team nodded and watched as Natasha pushed the barrel of the gun to Svetlana’s forehead, hard.

‘Answer the question properly.’

‘There are spies everywhere. It was not hard to find out the intel that we desired, you know that better than anyone.’

‘Well, you failed. We found Riley and your institution has crumbled. Just like the last one did. Any last words?’

‘Нас всегда будет больше.’ _(‘There will always be more of us.’)_

Natasha instantly pulled the trigger; a perfect headshot first in Svetlana and then in the other two guards. She watched triumphantly as their bodies crumpled to the ground.

‘Well, that’s one way to do it.’ Tony muttered, as the others nodded in agreement.

‘Let’s go.’ Steve said gently, as Natasha looked around at the familiar style ballroom, feeling her heart beat rise slightly. She looked at Yelena who was staring adamantly at her feet and she nodded. They then followed Steve and the rest of the team, as they made their way out of the building back to the Quinjet and back to Riley.


	60. Saved?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha finds out the extent of Riley's injuries and Riley wakes up

‘Ms Romanoff?’ Natasha immediately stood up from the corridor outside of the Avengers Medbay, as Helen Cho walked out with a clipboard. She could see past the woman, into the Medbay, where a large curtain had been pulled up around Riley and she felt her stomach twist.

‘How is she?’

‘Well, as you know, she has been unconscious since you found her and still is. I have managed to stop the bleeding on a particularly large knife wound on her stomach, that reopened when she was moved into theatre.’

‘How did the surgery go?’ Natasha replied stoically, watching Helen’s face for any indication that Riley’s condition was worse than she had originally thought.

‘Very well considering the dangers I faced of accidently activating the chip in her neck – controlled by whoever was torturing her. I managed to remove it with no problems and she will be fine.’ Natasha nodded in relief, taking a deep breath as she glanced at the clipboard; her face instantly going back to being emotionless. No emotion, no weakness.

‘What about the rest?’

‘From what I can gather, they gave her an injection to remove all traces of her previous life, until she wakes up, I cannot tell to what extent the damage will be and…’

‘-so she might not remember us?’ The ‘_me’_, was left unsaid and Helen nodded gravely.

‘It’s a possibility, but I’m not too sure, I’ve never seen anything like this. Also, it seems as if her body has repelled most of it, but there are still some…abnormalities in her blood sample. It appears as if her body has tried to heal itself whilst she was being treated poorly, but it couldn’t sustain this properly due to the amount she has had to ordeal.’

‘She can heal herself?’

‘Like I said, I am not too sure of the extents of the injection she received, as I’ve never seen this before. We have to wait until she wakes up to know for sure. Clearly her powers have not been affected much, due to the storm that she created, but it is possible that the serum might have altered her powers; again until she wakes up I’m not sure.’ Natasha tried to keep her breathing even, and she nodded for Helen to continue.

‘Riley has lost a lot of weight in a short space of time and is malnourished – not helped I’m sure, by the injection and things she was made to do. She has a UTI and so will need to be kept on anti-biotics until that clears up. Also, there is extensive bruising on most of her body and large burn marks on her neck from the collar and chip – she will need to use this cream to allow it to heal.’ Helen passed Natasha a tub of cream and the assassin took it wordlessly, forcing herself not to break down in the corridor.

‘Is that everything? Did they…was she…’

‘-she was not harmed in any sexual way, no.’ Natasha nodded and breathed another small sigh of relief, as Helen continued talking.

‘Everything physical that I can see has been treated or is in the process of being, mentally on the other hand…’ Nodding again, Natasha looked into the room, anxious to see her adopted daughter.

‘-thanks Helen. That’s fine. Can I see her yet?’

‘Well, she is still sleeping, but you can sit with her. I’m hoping that she will wake soon, with the medication I have given her.’ Moving aside, Helen nodded at Natasha, as the assassin thanked her again, before moving into the Medbay to sit with Riley.

The little girl looked a lot younger than her 11 years, as she laid on the too big hospital bed, hooked up to machines and with wires everywhere. Natasha couldn’t hold back a sound that was more a sob than a gasp as her eyes fell on her. Sitting down gingerly on the edge of the bed, she took one of Riley’s small hands in her own, stroking her knuckles soothingly, as she looked at her.

‘I am so sorry baby. I never wanted any of this to happen to you, ever. I promise I will be better; you shouldn’t have had to suffer because of my past.’ Choking on a sob, Natasha put her head in her hands as tears begun to fall down her face. Only the faint sounds of crying and of a light beeping machine could be heard in the Medbay.

***

The first thing Riley could smell when she woke up, was of sterile cleaning equipment, just like in the room where she was tortured and she laid there quietly as she pretended to stay asleep to formulate a plan. Her mind felt fuzzy and she was instantly aware of pain, all over her body, but especially her neck – clearly the healing that had been working, had stopped. She could hear a beeping sound and she squinted one eye open, coming face to face with a sleeping Natasha, in a chair by where she was laying.

Feeling a rush of emotions, Riley opened her eyes and came to the conclusion that she was hallucinating or that Svetlana had given her another injection, to make her think that she had escaped. This must be a test, the little girl thought, as she felt very real and so did her surroundings – maybe it was a different room in the Red Room? Riley thought quickly that if she passed the test, maybe she would be allowed to rejoin the academy and stop being punished. She’d tried to escape before, but it hadn’t worked; maybe they were testing her loyalty to them. Riley shivered, at the thought of what would happen to her, if she failed.

Slowly reaching out to the bedside table, Riley picked up a large syringe that had been left and she carefully sat up, without making much sound, her breathing increasing rapidly and therefore the beeping got louder too - it was enough to rouse Natasha who had been sleeping lightly.

Their eyes locked for a split second, before without hesitation, Riley pulled out the wires attached to her chest and arms and she launched herself at Natasha, who looked shocked and leapt out of the way of the sharp syringe.

‘Woah, hey Kid! It’s me! Calm down!’

‘YOU’RE NOT REAL!’ Riley bellowed, moving quickly, trying to stab Natasha, who tried to restrain the child, to little effect, as the girl bit Natasha’s hand hard, enough for the assassin to flinch in pain - not expecting a physical fight with her 11 year old child, who had been unconscious for 12 hours and she watched in horror as Riley squirmed away, syringe held out in front of her.

‘Riley! I am real, we saved you! You’re back home, at the Compound!’

‘LIAR! I'M NOT RILEY ANYMORE, I'M NOVA!’ Launching herself at Natasha again, Riley kicked and punched her, trying to find an opening that she could use to stab her. Blocking her attacks and not retaliating, Natasha knew that she couldn’t overpower her, without hurting her.

‘FRIDAY GET STEVE AND CLINT IN HERE NOW!’

_‘Right away Agent Romanoff.’_

‘You aren’t real.’ Riley spat, as both mother and daughter walked in a circle waiting for the other to make a move. Natasha thought quickly of how she could stop Riley, whilst not hurting her, but Riley had other ideas. As quick as a flash, the little girl grabbed a water jug off the bedside table and threw it at the assassin’s head. Natasha ducked in the nick of time as glass exploded on the wall and fell around their feet.

‘It’s me, Mischief. I’m here. You aren’t there anymore, we came to save you an…’

‘-SHUT UP! YOU’RE A HALLUCINATION AND YOU AREN’T HERE!’ Natasha swore as Riley ran over the glass barefooted and sent a roundhouse kick to her chest. Grunting with the sudden impact, Natasha swept her foot under Riley’s; however, to her surprise, Riley had anticipated this and jumped over it easily.

‘Is that the best you’ve got?’

‘Riley, sweetheart, stop this…’

‘-NO! YOU LEFT ME AND I HAVE TO DO THIS! I AM NOT WEAK!’ Realising a second too late what she meant, Natasha yelped as Riley threw the syringe at her with aim and it landed in her chest, blood trickling out steadily. The door to the Medbay flung open and Steve and Clint ran inside, their eyes widening at the scene that befell them of Riley all but baring her teeth at Natasha – who was pulling out a large syringe from her chest, looking pale and heartbroken.

Clint swore as Riley all but growled at the new faces and instead of fighting Natasha, she jumped with ease over the glass, spotting a knife on the other side of the room.

‘STEVE! THE KNIFE!’ Natasha screamed, as she realised what Riley had seen. Snapping into action, Steve quickly ran over to Riley who was making a beeline for the weapon and he managed to grab her, holding her easily as she screamed and thrashed. Clint ran over to Natasha, who had a hand clutched to her chest, coated in blood.

‘Friday, get Helen in here now!’ Clint demanded, as he assessed Natasha’s wound, with Riley still screaming in the background in Steve’s tight hold.

‘Riley, you need to calm down, your stitches have reopened. We’re all here and you’re safe, I promise.’ Steve said in as calm a voice as he could muster, but all that did was anger Riley further.

‘NO! I WON’T FAIL! YOU’RE NOT HERE! NO!’ The screaming all but broke everyone’s hearts, as they heard the emotion behind it. Helen and Bruce all but ran into the room and they gasped upon the sight, running towards a drawer and pulling out another syringe, this time with a blue fluid inside, aswell as some restraints. Riley let out the loudest scream that any of them had ever heard from her before as Helen quickly walked over to her and injected it into the girl’s arm, which had been pinned to her side by Steve. Everyone watched as she slumped in his grip and once again fell unconscious.

‘Um…put her back in the bed please Mr Rogers. I need to restrain her before she wakes up. The injection will not last for long and I’d rather not have a repeat of what just happened, as I’m sure you don’t either.’ Bruce followed Steve as they rewired Riley to the machines and tied her arms and legs down to the bed, with very limited movement for when she woke up.

‘Ms Romanoff? I need to assess your injury.’ Nodding blankly, Natasha allowed Helen to sit her down on an unoccupied bed and start stitching her wound, as Clint sat next to her and held her hand. Bruce tended to Riley, whose stitches had re-opened and he quietly re-stitched her and started to take the glass shards out of her feet. Everyone fell silent, until Natasha started speaking in a broken voice.

‘She just…she thought I was a hallucination, a test, set for her to complete. She stabbed me. She wanted to kill me. I did this to her. This is all my fault.’ Natasha whispered, as Helen finished dressing her wound, whilst the others listened gravely.

‘Nat, this isn’t your fault. She’s been brainwashed; but we are all going to be here for her. She’ll be ok.’ Clint said quietly, rubbing her knuckles as a tear slid down her face.

‘But, what if she isn’t?’ Nobody could answer, as they all looked over at the unconscious little girl and felt their hearts break.


	61. Safe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The drugs begin to wear off and Riley wakes up, remembering who she really is.

Natasha turned a page in her book, as she waited for Riley to wake up from the injection that Helen had given her. It had been two hours since the episode and Natasha had taken to reading, in an effort to distract herself from the anxiety that had started to build up – thinking about if Riley didn’t get better.

A small shuffle alerted her to the fact that Riley had awoken. She quickly lifted her head from her book and came face to face with the little girl, who was watching her intently, pulling on the restraints with short tugs, not breaking eye contact.

‘How are you feeling?’ No response apart from a small tilt of the head – unmissable to the normal eye, but Natasha was trained to pick up on signals like this. She noticed that Riley’s pupils were still widened – due to the serum from the Red Room, although she looked slightly less pale than before; she tried a different tactic.

‘Do you know who I am?’ A nod in response.

‘You’re my adopted mother… but you’re not real.’ Natasha’s eyes widened, but she recovered quickly.

‘I am real Riley, I’m right here, see?’

‘My name isn’t Riley…not anymore. My name is Nova and this is all a test and I will not fail. You’re not real, you can’t be. It’s a…a hallucination or something!’ Natasha watched as Riley started pulling hard on the restraints – luckily besides the bed shaking slightly, the restraints remained intact. She quickly debated something and then tentatively, she reached over and put her hand over Riley’s smaller one, watching as the girl’s eyes widened.

‘You…how are you touching me if you’re a hallucination? Y…you can’t be here.’ Riley whispered, avoiding Natasha’s eyes as she pulled her hand from under her hand.

‘Why can’t I be?’ Natasha asked patiently, trying to understand what was going through Riley’s mind, although she had an idea.

‘Because they…they said you all left me and they… they were there to help me…you’re not real! THIS ISN’T REAL! GO AWAY!’ Riley suddenly yelled, thrashing away from Natasha – annoyed that the restraints were limiting her movements.

‘Riley, this is real. If I weren’t real, how can you feel my hand? Hmm?’ Riley didn’t have an answer for that, however she ceased her thrashing and looked around anxiously for any sign of Svetlana or the guards, suddenly growing quiet and scared.

‘They’re going to punish me if I talk to you. No more…no more punishments. Bad. Hurt and bleeding if I’m naughty... Shocks…so many shocks and so much pain.’ The little girl started babbling quickly, as Natasha tried to understand her quiet words.

‘They will not hurt you, ever again. Do you understand? You’re safe _malyska._ I’m real and you’re safe. You’re not called Nova; you’re Riley. My _malyska_... my little Mischief.’ Something stirred within Riley at the sound of her nickname and Natasha sat patiently as Riley opened and closed her mouth, seemingly confused.

‘Mom? Are you…are you really here?’ Natasha held back a sigh of relief and she nodded quickly, putting her hand over Riley’s again and the other one cupped her cheek fondly; seeing her pupils less wide than before.

‘I am here. This is all real. We rescued you and you’re back home.’ Riley didn’t answer, apart from a tear that slipped down her cheek and after a few moments, Natasha watched as she stared at the ceiling.

‘Mischief?’

‘I’m…I’m bad.’

‘No, you’re not, never. You’re my good girl Riley and I’m so sorry this happened to you.’

‘I am bad. I hurt people…I hurt you…I thought…I thought it wasn’t real and my head feels fuzzy and numb…’ Natasha slipped into the hospital bed next to Riley and held her as close as the restraints allowed.

‘You are not bad. You were hurt by bad people who brainwashed you. You are a very good person and I love you.’ After a moment of hesitation and a flinch, the little girl relaxed into her mothers embrace, tears flowing steadily down her cheeks.

‘Mommy?’

‘Right here Kiddo.’

‘I’m…I’m so…sorry! I…didn’t m…mean to…to hurt y…you!’ Riley sobbed, as she felt the bandage on Natasha’s chest, as she curled into the woman’s warm embrace. Natasha soothingly shushed her and rubbed comforting circles on her back.

‘I know sweetheart, I know. It wasn’t your fault, ok? You weren’t yourself. I completely understand and I don’t blame you at all. You know, when I first deferred from the Red Room, I had a bad dream and woke up, thinking I was back there and I shot Clint by accident.’

‘Y…you did?’ Riley asked, between her cries and Natasha nodded, pushing her hair back from her face.

‘Yep. I forgot who he was and where I was. I can understand…probably better than most, how it feels to not know who you are or what your purpose is.’

‘I…missed you! I thought you’d stopped looking for me and that I was all alone and…’ Natasha immediately hugged Riley impossibly tighter, as she let a few tears slip down her face, feeling overwhelming love for the little girl in her arms.

‘-I missed you too; more than you can imagine. I never stopped looking for you Mischief. You are never alone. Even if you’re away from me, I will never stop looking for you.’ This seemed to pacify Riley as she nodded and allowed her body to relax into Natasha’s embrace fully. After a few moments, she spoke up, not crying as much anymore.

‘Mom?’

‘Yes sweetheart?’

‘How…how long was…was I gone away fo…for?’ Natasha sighed softly and stroked the little girl’s hair, as she started to blink sleepily.

‘Almost two weeks Mischief. I’m so sorry it took us so long to find you; we tried everything, they hid you very well.’

‘They…they did b…bad things to m…me!’ Riley whimpered as images from the abuse started to thunder through her mind, and Natasha held her tighter, shushing her softly as she begun to cry again and shake.

‘You don’t have to talk about anything that you don’t want to talk about, ok? This is all going at your pace. We’re here for you every step of the way. If and when you’re ready to talk, I’ll be here to listen, no judgements.’ She felt Riley nod into her chest, yawning slightly, before she whimpered in sudden pain from her stomach. Looking down, she saw that there was a large bandage under her hospital gown and she felt nauseous.

‘M…my tummy! Am…am I going to…to die?!’ Natasha was quick to calm her down, quietly shushing her as she burst into tears again, from exhaustion and pain.

‘No, you’re not going to die. It’s just a little cut, ok? The doctors are making it all better, but is it ok if I get Helen and Bruce in, just to have a quick check of your injuries, before you go back to sleep?’ Heart beating fast, Riley’s eyes widened as she looked at Natasha in horror.

‘But…but doctors have…have needles and…needles hurt and…’

‘-Riley, breathe baby. In for three and out for three.’ Natasha demonstrated deep breaths, which the little girl copied after a few moments, until she was breathing somewhat normally again.

‘It’s just Helen Cho and Bruce, ok? They’re not going to use anything on you, without your permission, if it is needed. They will not hurt you. I’m going to be here the whole time, ok?’ She felt Riley nod into her chest and Natasha quietly asked Friday to call Helen and Bruce in.

A few minutes later, they both walked in, with Bruce carrying a duffle bag and they walked over to check on Riley. Bruce carefully checked the machines and IV’s, whilst Helen walked over to Riley and smiled kindly at her.

‘Hi Riley, how are you feeling?’

‘My tummy hurts.’ The little girl whimpered as Natasha stroked her hair.

‘That’s to be expected unfortunately, although you are due for another course of medicine, which Bruce is actually administering now for you.’ Riley looked over to the side, seeing Bruce change one of the IV bags and she nodded slightly, before curling into Natasha’s side, hiding her face from everyone.

‘Riley? I need to tell you about your diagnosis, is that alright?’ Natasha felt Riley start trembling and Natasha instantly shook her head at Helen, muttering that she would tell her in a bit. Helen nodded and gestured to Bruce, who passed Natasha the duffle bag with a smile. She frowned, but mouthed a ‘thank you’ to him, and watched as they both left again.

Natasha pulled out from a duffle bag, a familiar bear that had her smirking and she gently nudged Riley on the arm.

‘Hey Kid, look who Uncle Bruce brought you from your bedroom. Think he missed you too.’

Riley hesitantly peeked out from hiding her face in Natasha’s chest, when she felt a tiny nudge on her arm and she smiled at the sight of her teddy bear: Cuddles. Reaching out for him, Riley held him tight as Natasha adjusted the two of them carefully, so that they were laying down, under the covers.

‘I want you to try and get some more sleep Mischief, ok?’

‘I…I don’t wanna.’ She whined softly; not wanting any of this to be a dream and have to wake up forgetting who she was again. Natasha seemed to understand and she smiled sympathetically, stroking her hair soothingly.

‘I understand, but your body needs time to heal. You’re being given a lot of medicine for the pain and to flush the bad serum out, and you’re so tired baby.’ Riley couldn’t help herself hold back a yawn and she whimpered as her body suddenly felt exhausted once more.

‘Close your eyes and try to relax.’ Riley stubbornly tried to keep her eyes open, but she couldn’t help her eyes begin to feel too heavy to stay open, as Natasha started humming a hauntingly beautiful lullaby under her breath. After a few minutes, Riley’s eyes fluttered closed as she sighed, shuffling so she was more comfortable, and curled into Natasha.

‘Good girl, just relax. You’re completely safe.’

‘Mommy? Will you stay with me?’

‘Always.’ Natasha felt all the tension leave Riley’s body after a while and her deep even breathing signalled that she had finally fallen asleep. Closing her own eyes, Natasha relished the feeling of the 11 year old, back in in her arms, placing a kiss on the top of her head as she fell asleep too.


	62. Realisation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team realise the true extent of Riley's conditioning and Yelena reacts badly to something that happens. Can Natasha get through to her daughter in time?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Everyone!  
Hope you all had a lovely holidays!  
I based this chapter off the history of the Red Room programming the girls to watch Snow White with hidden subliminal messages of death and destruction inside - that Riley has had experience with unfortunately!  
I hope you like it!
> 
> Love  
MarvelObsessedgirl3  
xx

Natasha, in her past, had been stabbed, punched within an inch of her life, made to dance until her feet bled and her bones broke; however, none of that pain compared to watching her adopted daughter wake up the following morning screaming bloody murder, thinking that she was being tortured and wailing whenever anybody tried to get near her, to comfort her.

Crouched in a ball in the corner of the Medbay, Riley was tightly gripping one of Helen Cho’s pens that she had, which she held out in front of her, in what she hoped was a threatening manner. Natasha, Steve, Clint, Yelena, Bruce and Helen had tried to talk to her, but the little girl was having none of it whatsoever and they were all at a loss for what to do, as she started to babble to herself quickly and inaudibly.

Clint nudged Natasha, as the others spoke quietly, trying to ignore the hysterical muttering of Riley, between her cries.

‘Can you work out what she’s saying?’

‘No, but whatever it is, it can’t be good.’

‘Maybe we should leave her to calm down by herself for a bit? Friday could watch her?’

‘No.’

‘Nat…’

‘-Clint, I said no. I’m staying with her, whether she wants me here or not. I promised her.’

‘Ok, I just figured that if… Tasha?’

Natasha’s and Yelena’s eyes had suddenly widened as she finally made sense of something that Riley was muttering under her breath, as she started speaking slightly louder than before, everyone else had heard it too, but they all looked confused. Natasha and Yelena did not.

_‘I’m…I’m sure I’ll get a…along somehow. Everything’s…g…going to be alright…You know the p…penalty if you fail.’_

Natasha knew what it meant and her face paled, as she instantly looked over to Yelena who was shaking. Her eyes looked empty. Suddenly, something in Yelena had snapped and she instinctively reached for her knife; which Clint saw and he caught her hand immediately, as she started struggling against him, seemingly forgetting where she was. Riley continued to talk quietly to herself, no longer aware or caring of where she was.

‘Hey Cap? Bit of help here?!’ Steve ran over and helped Clint to restrain Yelena, who screamed against their hold, her eyes were empty and she tried everything to get away, to no avail. Natasha stood in front of her, avoiding punches that were aimed at her, talking in what she hoped was a calm but firm voice.

‘Yelena! Calm down! Stop! It’s us!’

‘LET ME GO!’

‘You’re not there anymore! Listen to me and try to calm down!’

_‘Now, turn red. T…tempt Snow White to make her h…hunger for a bite.’ _

‘Is Riley quoting Snow White? The film?’ Bruce asked with a frown, as he tried to understand the situation and Clint then froze and understood what was happening, as Yelena screamed loudly and tried fruitlessly to get away from Steve and Clint, as Riley continued talking to herself quietly, rocking back and forth.

_‘Mark my words, there’s trouble a-brewin.’_

In the Red Room, Natasha had once told him that in an effort to brainwash the students into killing without question, the girls had been forced to watch video projections such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs – in which the leaders had put in lots of subliminal messages surrounding death, fear and instilling pain. Clint had only ever seen this happen to Natasha once before, many years ago after she joined SHIELD and they were at the farm. Cooper was 4 and he was watching Snow White, when they arrived at the house, unfortunately, Natasha had reacted in a similar way and had had to be tranquilised, to stop her from screaming and trying to hurt anyone that she could unknowingly.

That was a long long time ago, however, Yelena had only been free from the Red Room for little over a year and unfortunately, the brainwashing was still evidently, very much there. Despite a calm façade, Natasha had to try very hard to stay in the moment and not to let her mind wander to the film that she had been forced to watch, day after day.

‘Steve…we need to get her…’

‘-someone get Ms Belova out of here. This is not helping anybody.’ Helen demanded, interrupting Clint, looking at both Steve and Clint, who were struggling to restrain the blonde assassin, as her eyes were fixed on Riley, as she mimed the words that the child was speaking.

‘On it.’ Steve muttered, lifting Yelena as best as he could, with her flailing her limbs everywhere in an effort to get free.

***

‘Are you ok here, Nat?’ Clint asked, as he stayed back and watched Steve and Yelena go, before turning back to Riley, who was still rocking back and forth.

‘Yeah. I’ve got this.’ Natasha noticed that Riley’s eyes were also empty, as she sung a song under her breath, staring at the wall.

_‘Make a wish into the well_ _  
That's all you have to do  
And if you hear it echoing  
Your wish will soon come true.’_

‘Ms Romanoff? If Riley does not calm down soon, we will have no choice but to sedate her and restrain her, as she will cause her injuries to worsen.’ Natasha nodded and took a deep breath.

‘_Shit_. Ok, let me try one more time.’ A small nod from Helen, was all Natasha needed and she took a deep breath and quietly walked over to the little girl, as Helen walked out of the room with Clint.

‘Mischief?’

‘Mom! Look, our house! The lit’s light—the light’s lit!’

‘It is very bright in here isn’t it? We’re in the Medbay in the Avengers Compound, Riley. Can you tell me where you are right now?’

‘Beware strangers!’

‘No strangers here, Kid. Just me and you. Can I come closer to you and can you pass me that pen?’ Riley hesitated and her eyes finally started to focus on Natasha, as the assassin stayed still, until she received a small nod from Riley, almost unmissable to the normal eye, as the girl held out the pen tentatively, which Natasha took and put away quickly.

‘Mark my words, there’s trouble a-brewin.’

‘No trouble here. You are completely safe here Riley. Hey, do you want to see what I brought you for breakfast? Helen says you can start eating solid food now.’ Holding a small bag from a café near, that had been brought in earlier, consisting of a breakfast muffin and an orange juice, Natasha opened it and held out the items to the little girl who eyed them curiously; the assassin hoped it might distract her, but unfortunately, it seemed to have the opposite effect.

‘NO! You’ll… you’ll not get a bite to…to eat! . T…tempt Snow White to make her h…hunger for a bite!’ Natasha understood immediately and suddenly the weight loss of the little girl was evident – she had not been eating, as she thought all the food was poisoned that had been given to her in the Red Room.

‘It is not poisoned. Look, I’ll take a bite to prove it to you.’ Natasha did so and Riley watched carefully as the assassin took a small bite out of the muffin and smiled at the little girl, as she tilted her head in confusion.

‘You eat…but it…it isn’t bad?’

‘Not bad.’ Natasha confirmed, holding out the muffin to the little girl who took it tentatively and sniffed it, her eyes completely fixed on Natasha.

‘Poisoned like the apple?’

‘No. Not poison. Just a normal breakfast muffin – your favourite actually.’

‘My…I have a…a favourite?’

‘Yep. Can you remember what it is?’ Riley frowned for a moment and then quietly said ‘blueberry and granola.’

‘That’s right Mischief. Wanna try a bit?’

‘No.’

‘Ok, maybe later then.’ Riley put the muffin in front of her and watched as Natasha put it back in the bag and then sat down in front of her with her hands outstretched.

‘I know how this feels Riley, but you’ve gotta fight it Kid. You’re stronger than them and I’m here with you. It was just a nightmare, sweetheart.’

‘I’m…I’m sure I’ll get a…along somehow. Everything’s…g…going to be alright…You know the p…penalty if you f…fail.’ Tears streamed down Riley’s cheeks again as she slowly crawled the short distance to Natasha and then fell into her arms, sobbing.

‘No more penalties. Ever again. Ok?’

‘No more?’ Repeated Riley through her sobs, focusing more on Natasha and less on her nightmare.

‘Never again.’ Natasha said firmly, stroking her fingers through her child’s hair, as Riley clutched her top and cried quietly into her.

‘You’re not going back there ever again. We’re going to get through this all together Mischief.’ Feeling a small nod against her chest, Natasha held Riley closer to her and lifted her up easily, shushing her as she started to panic slightly at the change of position.

Depositing her gently back in bed and hooking her up to the wires, Natasha slipped in next to her and held her close, as the child all but melted into her embrace and hid her head in the crook of her neck.

‘Riley? Can you look at me?’ A shake of the head had Natasha sighing softly.

‘It’s okay, just relax. You’re safe here. Please let mommy see those beautiful brown eyes?’ A nod and then a small whimper as Riley moved slightly and jostled her stomach, looking at Natasha through confused and teary eyes.

‘M…mommy? My…my…it hurts…my tummy and…and I’m tired!’ Natasha nodded and pressed the alarm button to signal Helen to come back inside.

‘I know. I had to get you settled back in bed, so that your body can recover and try to mend itself, ok? I’m going to stay with you, until you fall asleep.’ Riley bit her lip nervously but nodded all the same, tiredly, as Natasha started stroking her hair again, the continued soothing movement made the little girl succumb to sleep after a few moments and except Riley’s steady deep breathing, the door opened, interrupting the silence and Helen walked inside.

‘Is she asleep?’

‘Yes. Her body is exhausted, mentally and physically. Can you check her stitches?’

‘Of course. I’m hoping that her next lot of medication will be enough to kick start her new healing powers – hopefully it will heal a lot quicker now.’ Natasha nodded absentmindedly, as Helen walked over and checked the stitches on Riley’s stomach.

‘All still intact. She was lucky that they didn’t reopen again. With regards to her mind… I would suggest therapy of some kind, Ms Romanoff, there is amazing care from SHIELD and I’m sure that…’

‘-I appreciate that Helen, however, Riley needs to be with her family right now and no amount of therapy in her current state, will do much. She needs time to reacquaint herself to her normal life. How’s Yelena?’ Helen hummed in understanding and she gave Natasha a small sad smile.

‘With regards to Ms Belova, she is currently in the quiet room with Mr Barton and seems to be ok; however, Doctor Banner is keeping a close eye on her – I’m sure she would like to see you after the…events that transpired earlier.’

‘I’ll go and see her now then. Will you keep watch on Riley?’

‘Of course, I have a lot of paperwork that I need to finish anyway. I’ll notify you if she wakes up.’

‘Thank you.’ Sliding easily out of the child’s grasp, Natasha placed a kiss on her forehead and tucked her in, with Cuddles next to her, before giving Helen an appreciative nod and making her way upstairs to see Yelena.


	63. Sisters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yelena and Natasha have a chat

Natasha peered into the quiet room and saw Yelena sat in the corner of the room, staring blankly at the wall opposite. Clint smiled at her and stood up, mentioning something about needing a drink, leaving Natasha alone with Yelena.

‘Hey, can I sit?’ Natasha gestured to the left of Yelena and she nodded slightly, pulling her knees to her chest, not making eye contact with her.

‘Things kinda blew up back there, want to talk about it?’

‘I am still being controlled. Even now.’ Yelena turned to look at Natasha – the assassin was shocked to see that there were tears swimming in her eyes. She had only seen Yelena cry once before – in the entire time they had known each other and this un-nerved Natasha as she didn’t know how to handle this, so she went with her gut.

‘No, there was a ton of brain washing and conditioning Yelena, it isn’t your fault. It took me the better part of a decade until I managed to control stuff like that. There are times when I cannot listen to a certain song or watch a certain film…I don’t think it ever properly goes away.’

‘You are strong. I am weak.’

‘No, you are not weak Lena, there…’

‘-You were fine! You did not shout and scream and try to hurt everyone! I was not myself and it is all still there! Still controlling me!’

‘I was not fine. You know better than most about putting up a mask. I had my Kid to help, I had to compartmentalise and that took a lot of mental challenges for me, but I was struggling.’

‘I do not believe you. You did not react like me, you were fine!’ Natasha bit her lip and debated something before she sighed heavily and started playing with her fingernails, avoiding Yelena’s teary gaze.

‘A while ago…I was… helped. I didn’t manage it all on my own. There was so much conditioning. I know what it was like and I still face challenges sometimes, I’m just lucky I do not forget myself any more.’

‘I not understand.’

‘A couple of months after Ultron, a few years ago…Wanda went inside my head again, this time with my permission. I was in a bad place mentally and… she managed to help me, when I refused help from SHIELD. It took around a week to remove or alter the brainwashing and conditioning, but she managed it and it made things a lot easier. SHIELD removed a bit of it when I first deferred, but the majority of it was still there.’

‘She changed your memories?’

‘Yes…no…well kind of. Some couldn’t be gotten rid of, due to how long I was brainwashed for, but she managed to put up blocks of sorts – almost like a locked door, in front of the really bad memories and conditionings; so they’re there, but I can’t access them again, sometimes I have nightmares though and it takes me a while to calm down. Also, sometimes, like I said, there are certain things that will trigger me still, but Wanda repressed a lot of the trauma, for which I am forever thankful. Today was an example of that. I froze as soon as I heard Riley talk, it took a lot of mental effort to stay in the present.’

‘Wanda could…help me?’ Natasha smiled at Yelena and nodded.

‘I think she would be happy to, but I must warn you, it is a long process and very draining mentally, as you have to first relive it all, before it can be locked away.’ Yelena nodded and wiped a hand across her face, before standing up, with Natasha who gave her a kind smile.

‘Does it help?’

‘Yes. But like I said, it is a very draining process; but yes, it does help.’ Yelena nodded and then looked at her questioningly.

‘How is Riley?’

‘Exhausted and I am concerned about what she will be like when she wakes up. It seems as if they put everything into brainwashing her in those two weeks – I do not know how deep this goes yet. The fact that she knows her way around how to use things as weapons is also worrying, let alone the fact that she is refusing to eat. To put it simply, I’m very worried.’ Yelena hummed in response and sighed.

‘Brings back many memories, yes?’

‘Yes it does. I hate seeing her like this and I wish that she wouldn’t have to go through this, but me, you and the rest of the team will be there for her…I just hope it’s enough.’


	64. Resistance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley's condition continues to deteriorate and the Avengers are running out of options to help her.  
TW: Administering of a feeding tube.

‘I’m not eating that.’

Natasha looked at the scowling 11 year old sat in front of her, with her arms crossed, refusing yet another meal. It had now been four days since Riley had been rescued and she still had yet to eat or drink anything more than water. Helen had already informed Natasha that if she continued to refuse to eat, then she would have to have a feeding tube put in, later that day, as she had already lost quite a lot of weight both from the Red Room and since she had gotten back.

‘Mischief, you need to eat. Your body is healing and it needs nutrients.’

‘The wires are giving me those.’ Riley pointed out stubbornly, gesturing to the IV’s near her and Natasha sighed.

‘No, we’ve been over this, they are mainly giving you pain medication for your injuries, it isn’t enough to sustain your body. Come on, you love oatmeal!’ Holding out a spoon for her, Natasha watched as Riley pushed her hand away and glared at her.

‘I won’t eat it. Leave me alone!’ Riley’s condition after she was rescued from the Red Room was still not improving – although her flash backs were not as prominent as they had been, also, eating was a large challenge and her anxiety had gotten a lot worse. Her elemental powers were still there, however, Helen had noted abnormalities within her blood – indicating her new found healing powers, which were not working, due to the lack of food.

‘Come on Kid, help me out here. Do you want something else? Cereal…soup…sandwiches? Anything you want – I’ll get from the kitchen.’

‘No.’

‘Riley, if you don’t start eating, you know that we have to take other measures and I really don’t want that for you.’

‘Like what?’ Riley challenged, glaring at Natasha, who sighed and put down the spoon and oatmeal and looked at her seriously.

‘Like a feeding tube.’ Natasha watched as Riley’s eyes widened and she suddenly threw her fists down on her lap and took a deep breath.

‘No, I told you no before.’

‘If you continue to not want to eat, then we won’t have a choice Mischief. Come on, please just try the oatmeal and…’

‘-NO! LEAVE ME ALONE!’

‘Riley. Helen is literally waiting outside, if you don’t eat, then we don’t have another option. This starvation is dangerous for you, especially with your powers and trauma you’ve endured. Please, just try and eat a few bites, for me?’ Riley looked at the spoonful of oatmeal that Natasha had picked back up, almost pleadingly and despite feeling a twang of guilt, she couldn’t bring herself to eat it. Thoughts of the Red Room and the little food they were given and were punished for eating more than a few mouthfuls filled her head. She saw a girl be beaten in the ballet room for being ‘fat’, when she was very underweight and Riley didn’t want to get like that. Also the constant fear of things being poisoned terrified her, after videos that they were all shown of what happened to people who eat poisoned things and she felt herself growing afraid.

‘I don’t want to!’ Riley said, her voice on the brink of tears and Natasha nodded before she tried a different tactic.

‘Why don’t you want to eat? Is it because you think it’s poisoned?’

‘No…well not really, I know that it isn’t but my stupid head thinks it is!’ She hit her head a few times before Natasha gently restrained her wrists and rubbed her knuckles soothingly.

‘I know sweetheart. You’ve been through so much and you’re doing so well, but you need to help me out here. Why won’t you eat? What did they do to you?’

‘There were…videos of people who were poisoned and…Snow White and… NO! You’ll… you’ll not get a bite to…to eat! . T…tempt Snow White to make her h…hunger for a bite!’ Natasha jumped slightly in surprise as Riley suddenly hit her hand and the spoon and bowl fell to the floor with a shatter.

‘NO! NO!’

‘Riley, it’s okay. How about we take a few deep breaths an…’

‘NO! I’M FINE! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!’ Screamed Riley, so loud that Natasha flinched slightly from the shrill scream and realised just how far out of her depth she was.

‘Mischief, come here, it’s ok.’ Natasha watched as Riley put her hands over her ears and screamed and screamed; she didn’t move closer to Natasha and whenever the assassin tried to get near her, she screamed louder and tried to hit her – blocked easily by Natasha whose patience was beginning to waver.

‘Riley, I know it’s hard right now, but you do not hit me. I am trying to help you, honey.’

‘GO AWAY! I DON’T WANT YOUR HELP! NO!’

‘I’m not going anywhere. We will sit here until you’ve calmed down and we can have a proper conversation.’

‘I HATE YOU! GO AWAY!’

‘That’s fine. You don’t have to like me right now. I’m not leaving you alone for you to potentially harm yourself. You’ve been through a lot and this is very hard on you, but one way or another you have to eat.’

‘NO!’

Natasha had no idea what to do, but she knew she couldn’t leave her daughter in this state and so, taking a leaf out of her ‘Auntie Nat’ book when the Barton children would have a tantrum of sorts, she simply sat there, pulled out her phone and ignored Riley, who was still screaming.

After a few minutes, Friday piped up with Helen asking to come in and sedate Riley, to which Natasha refused and said it was all under control. She knew that the little girl was simply angry at herself and the whole situation and this was the only way to get her emotions across – apart from crying. Natasha knew that emotions had always been difficult for the child to express due to her upbringing and the trauma she had endured recently had not helped that. It seemed as if they’d taken three steps forward and a hundred back. Looking at the screaming crying little girl on the hospital bed, Natasha was reminded heavily of what she was like when they had first met. Hostile, angry with the world and herself and hidden away behind an angry mask.

Then finally, after pretending to reply to emails (she was playing a game instead), Natasha finally heard Riley stop screaming, although she was still breathing quickly and sniffling, avoiding her gaze.

‘Have you finished?’ No response except a jerky movement – which Natasha took to be a ‘yes’.

‘Good. Now, let’s try this again.’ Reaching across onto the bedside table, where a breakfast bagel was, Natasha held it out to Riley who turned away and crossed her arms again.

‘Riley, please, just try…for me?’ Riley’s eyes filled with tears as she shook her head and clamped her mouth shut. Natasha sighed and decided it was time to get Helen in.

‘Then, I’m sorry Mischief, but we don’t have another option. Friday, get Helen in here to administer the tube please.’ In an instant, Riley was up on her feet, glaring at Natasha angrily, who remained stoic faced.

‘NO! NO I WON’T! I TOLD YOU NO!’

_‘Yes, Agent Romanoff.’ _

In less than a few seconds, Helen bustled into the Medbay, and gave Riley a sympathetic look as she rummaged through some drawers and pulled out a long surgical tube and tape. Riley saw this and screamed, making a break for the open Medbay door. However, anticipating this, Natasha leapt up and restrained her easily, shushing her as she screamed and wailed in her grip.

‘It’ll be over in a few minutes, Mischief. This isn’t a punishment, we are just trying to help you, until you can eat by yourself again.’ This did little to pacify the little girl, who was trying to squirm out of Natasha’s tight hold, however, the lack of eating had greatly weakened Riley and she wasn’t able to break free.

‘Friday? Get Clint in here, please and brief him on the situation.’ A few minutes later, Clint appeared and took in the scene before him, before walking over to Riley and helping to restrain her, as Helen started measuring the tube.

‘NO!’ Screamed Riley, as Helen brought over a glass of water and the measured tube.

‘Lay her down please, Natasha, Clint would you mind holding her arms to her sides?’ The adults did so and Riley cried harder, feeling a sudden urge to be sick. Natasha realised what was about to happen and she turned her head quickly to the side, as she threw up from crying.

‘Riley, you need to calm down. We can’t start this until you’re calmer. Nothing bad will happen, it’s all okay.’ After a few agonising minutes, Riley still wasn’t calming down and taking initiative, Helen decided to sedate her. Mentioning this to Natasha and Clint, they both nodded, looking at the still screaming child and felt a sense of helplessness. The only way the feeding tube would go in, was whilst Riley wasn’t awake.

‘There’s going to be a small pinch, Riley.’ Helen warned, pricking her arm with the sedation medication, as Riley screamed an ear piercing screech again, making the adults flinch slightly.

‘STOP IT! I HATE YOU ALL! LEAVE ME ALONE!’

‘Shhhh, you’re okay baby. I know this sucks, but we’re trying to help you.’

‘NO!’ A minute later of screaming and the girl finally fell limp on the bed. Working quickly, Helen quickly administered the feeding tube and hooked it up to a portable bag – which contained the necessary liquids.

‘She’ll need to be restrained.’ Natasha said emotionlessly, imagining Riley waking up and instantly taking the tube out.

‘Yes. I’m just checking it is all in correctly.’ Helen replied, taping the tube to the side of the little girl’s tear stained face, before she reached into a side drawer and started bringing out the restraints and putting them on the child’s arms and legs.

‘She’s going to pitch another fit when she wakes up.’ Clint murmured as they watched Helen restrain her.

‘I know. I wish that she had never had to go through all this and I just don’t know how to help her. This is the only way that she will get the nutrients she needs until she can eat by herself again.’

‘Yeah, but when the hell will that be? This Kid is not the same one that we knew before.’

‘I know that underneath all this anger and distrust, is still Riley. It’s just going to take longer than I thought, to get her back.’ Clint nodded in agreement and held Natasha’s hand, as Helen looked gravely at them.

‘Like I said when she was first brought in. The physical pain will heal, but the mental pain and trauma? That will be harder to heal. We cannot keep sedating her, Ms Romanoff.’ Taking one last look at her adopted daughter, Natasha pulled her hand out of Clint’s and instantly turned and made her way out of the Medbay, Riley’s screams still echoing in her mind.


	65. Uncle Tony

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Riley and Tony have a heart to heart and some rules have to be broken:)

_Everything was eerily quiet. Riley turned down a dark corridor, lit dimly by a singular hanging lantern on the wall. She knew exactly where she was and that thought terrified her. Walking slowly, anxiously, she reached the door at the end of the corridor and pulled it open, coming face to face with a class of girls, practising ballet. _

_‘There you are Nova. You will be punished for being 3 minutes late, after the class. Get in line now.’ Came the cold and unforgiving voice of Svetlana, who was holding a large cane – blood splatters shone from the end of it and Riley looked over at the girls, one of which was sporting bloody large cane marks on her upper thighs and back. _

_Riley looked down and saw that she was wearing her ballet outfit, but it was covered in blood too from yesterday’s beating._

_‘My…outfit…there’s blo…’_

_‘Shut up you stupid girl. Dance.’ Doing as she was told, Riley tried not to look down and she instantly fell into the ballet routine with the other girls. Flinching as every now and then, the cane would hit her ankles or knees, with an order from Svetlana to ‘straighten up’ or ‘dance properly.’ _

_***_

_The room changed and Riley was sat eating with the other girls – one of their only meals: half a cup of lumpy mashed potato, 6 green beans, a slice of dry bread and water. _

_‘If you eat like that, you will get fatter.’ Svetlana commented, as Riley ate hungrily – not having had dinner the past two days, as she was being punished. The other girls laughed at her – eating only a singular green bean or a slice of bread, before they were done._

_‘You are already the biggest one here. Do you want to get fatter? Like a pig? You are surely eating like one.’ Smiling nastily, Svetlana walked away and the other girls continued to laugh at Riley._

_Swallowing the lumpy mash, Riley felt suddenly sick and she ran out of the room and threw up in the bathroom, tears streaming down her face. _

_***_

_‘Again.’ Riley screamed as she was whipped again, by one of the soldiers, as Svetlana looked on, almost bored. _

_‘PLEASE STOP! I’M SORRY! I WON’T DO IT AGAIN!’_

_‘Liar. Again. You will learn. They all learn.’ Continued beatings made Riley continue to scream and cry, as she was hit again and again, each hit harder than the one before. _

_‘I DIDN’T MEAN TO!’ Svetlana shook her head and gestured for her to be hit again. _

_‘You do not mention your past life – asleep or not. You will learn to accept this new life, one way or another.’_

_‘I DIDN’T MEAN TO! I DON’T REMEMBER WHAT I SAID! I’M SORRY! I DON’T REMEMBER!’ The little girl screamed, as she was hit again and again. _

_‘Enough. You will stay here in isolation, until you learn.’ _

_‘NO! NOT AGAIN! I’M SORRY!’ Svetlana and the soldiers left, Riley was tied to the wall, half naked and bleeding; feeling more alone than ever, but Svetlana looked back and smiled evily at her._

_‘Don’t forget, this is a punishment.’ With that, the temperature suddenly plummeted and Riley instantly shivered, as if she was in a freezer. _

_‘We will see you in an hour. If you survive that long.’_

_‘NO! DON’T LEAVE ME HERE! NO!’_

***

Riley screamed and her eyes flew open, her heart beating rapidly in her chest, as she gasped for breath. Images of her nightmare thundered through her mind and she starting crying.

Blinking the tears out of her eyes, she realised that she was no longer tied up in a cell in the Red Room, she was in a hospital bed. The Medbay at the Avengers Compound. Right.

‘F…Friday?’

_‘Yes Riley? I sense that your heart rate is higher than usual and you appear to be in distress, would you like me to call Dr Banner for you?’_

‘N…no…w…where’s N…Natasha?’

_‘Agent Romanoff is currently asleep. It is 3.43am. The only other person awake, is Mr Stark. He has been alerted of your situation and is on his way to you.’_

‘I…I don’t want to see…to see him or…or anyone. I…I’m fine. I…’ Riley broke off as she was suddenly aware of two things – one, that she couldn’t move her arms and legs more than a few inches and also that there was something taped to her face.

‘W…what’s going on?! Friday! Someone help me! MOM!’

The Medbay door opened and Tony walked in, his signature smirk instantly being replaced with a look of concern as Riley started screaming and writhing in bed, sobbing.

‘Woah! Friday lights. Calm down little Red. You’re fine, you’re in the Medbay with your favourite Uncle.’ The lights instantly came on and Riley watched as Tony quickly made his way over to her and sat down in the unoccupied chair next to her bed, carefully brushing her curly hair away from her forehead as she sobbed.

‘U…Uncle T…Tony! W…what’s g…going on?! I…I can’t m…move! I’m s…scared!’

‘Shhhh. I know Kiddo. It sucks. You had to be restrained incase you tried to pull the tube out when you woke up. I promise you’re safe though and this is only temporary. Dammit. Bruce said you wouldn’t be awake for another few hours. Guess you’re ahead of schedule.’

‘W…what’s g…going on?!’ The little girl repeated, tears streaming down her face as she looked at Tony pleadingly.

‘…well…you weren’t eating, so um...’ Tony began and Riley instantly put the pieces together. The tube…a feeding tube.

‘TAKE IT OUT!’ She screamed, thrashing around trying to dislodge it, as Tony watched, with an lost expression.

‘Kid, you know that we can’t do that. It just has to be like this for a while, until you can eat by yourse…’

‘-I DON’T WANNA EAT! LEAVE ME ALONE! LET ME GO! Please…I won’t do it a…again…I don’t remember an…’ Riley broke off as her voice cracked at the end, as images of her nightmare and of being tied up crossed her mind from her time in the Red Room. Tony seemingly understood and he quietly shushed her and continued stroking her hair as she wept and wept. Tony waited for a few moments, until Riley had calmed down and had stopped crying.

‘You’re not back there Kid. You’re safe here, I promise. Nobody is ever taking you back there again. Scouts honour.’ He made a saluting gesture and pulled a funny face, but Riley didn’t laugh, however, she calmed down somewhat and focused on her breathing.

‘Please…please untie me…please.’

‘Kid…’

‘-I won’t pull it out! Just…just please…’ Tony rubbed a hand down his face and looked at Riley seemingly debating something.

‘Did you know, that once, I had a tube in?’

‘You did?’

‘Yep.’ Tony said, popping the ‘p’ and nodding.

‘-my parents had just died and I refused to eat. I didn’t want to die persay, but I didn’t care about what happened to myself. I was engrossed in my work and spent a lot of time drinking to numb the pain. Anyways, I ended up passing out at a meeting and the next thing I knew, I was hooked up to machines in a hospital. I was in my early twenties. It sucked but I got better. I know our situations aren’t the same, but it really does help and it isn’t forever.’

‘I didn’t know…I’m sorry about your parents.’

‘Thanks Kid. You weren’t to know, I don’t talk about it a lot actually. Anyway, what I’m trying to say, is that I understand how crappy it all is; feeling like an invalid and constantly being checked on. It’s annoying.’

‘How long were you like that for?’

‘Three weeks. Until my body had recovered. I was so ill, that I didn’t even notice how much weight I’d lost or how much I was hurting myself.’ Riley looked down at her hands, past the bracelet that she was wearing to control her powers and realised for the first time since she had been brought back, that they looked almost skeletal and she gulped slightly.

‘Maybe…maybe I haven’t noticed either.’ She muttered and frowned, not remembering the last time she actually ate.

‘How about we make a deal?’ Tony tried, as Riley looked at him curiously and raised an eyebrow in such a Natasha-style that Tony laughed.

‘What?’

‘Nothing, you just look like Nat so much when you do that.’

‘I want my mom.’

‘I know Kid, but she needs to sleep. She’s been with you so much and I know I’m a hypocrite for saying this, but her sleep schedule is non-existent.’ Riley bit her lip and forced herself not to break down in tears again as she nodded.

‘So…what about a deal?’

‘What deal?’

‘If you promise not to pull that out…’ He gestured to the tube on her face and continued speaking. ‘-then I’ll undo the restraints and we can go down to the lab for a bit? I know that DUM-E misses you and I’m sure you could use a change of scenery.’ Riley nodded immediately and Tony clapped his hands together and stood up.

‘Great. I mean, I’m trusting you here little Red. If you pull that out, your mom will have my head and I have no idea what your mom will do, probably lock you up in here.’ He laughed, but stopped at Riley’s widened eyes and horrified expression.

‘No! No, I mean she wouldn’t do that…just let’s not pull it out, okay?’

‘…but I don’t want it in. Am I even allowed to go out?’ Riley murmured, looking at the wires and Tony smiled sadly.

‘I know squirt, but it’s helping. I bet you feel better already, right? Besides, I don’t see the problem of you leaving this cell for a bit. You’re with the most adultiest adult there is.’ Noticing that her stomach wasn’t hurting much anymore, Riley nodded slowly and realised that they were only trying to help her. Maybe she had lost enough weight now.

‘So, it’s your call. Here or the Lab?’

‘Lab.’ Riley said, as Tony smiled and then undid her restraints. Riley sat up and rubbed her wrists, which were red from where she had been struggling.

‘Okay. So, this is all portable and completely convenient – having been made by moi.’ Tony pulled the IV stand towards himself and showed Riley that she was now only hooked up to that, which could be easily wheeled about.

‘See? Totally easy to move around. Right. Let’s try and stand up, yeah?’ Riley nodded and swung her legs over the bed, feeling the cold tiled floor under her feet.

‘Ah, shoes…shoes…shoes…’ Tony muttered, looking around the Medbay for something for Riley to wear, besides the hospital gown.

‘Here. A bit big, but they’ll do the job.’ He handed her a pair of slippers that were very big, but he had stuffed the ends of them with a bit of tissue and they slid on almost perfectly.

‘There we go. Also, here.’ He handed her a dressing gown, that had been left on the other side of the room – probably by Wanda.

‘Mind Control won’t mind. Here you go. Hold onto my hand and let’s get going.’ Riley allowed him to put it on her and she then looked back at her bed and saw that her bear Cuddles, was still there. Part of her wanted to hold him, but the other half of her felt empty and so lost – so unchildlike after everything she had been through; she didn’t feel like her old self at all and it was almost like all her walls had gone back up – just like she was when she first arrived at the Compound a year prior.

Realising the dilemma, Tony smiled fondly and made to pick it up, when Riley shook her head, much to his surprise and confusion.

‘No.’

‘You don’t want it?’

‘No. I don’t need a stupid teddy bear. I’m fine.’

‘Your mom thought you’d like it when you woke up and…’

‘-I said no.’ Tony looked at her in confusion for a moment and then nodded, before making his way over to her.

‘Right…sure. Okay then, let’s get going.’ Riley turned back to Tony and with his help stood up, letting him guide her out of the Medbay and up to his Lab.


	66. Discharged

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony helps Riley a bit more and Riley is allowed out of the Medbay, but Natasha is concerned about her depressive state and how she refuses to talk to her or anyone.

It was strange being out of the Medbay and Riley found, that walking through the empty Compound with Tony, that she felt very out of place. Everything was so tidy and clean…she felt, messy and dirty – filled with an anxious feeling that she couldn’t get rid of.

‘Here we go then, home sweet home. Come on in Kid. Oh no…DUM-E? Stop…no…don’t pull tha…brilliant…there goes the new protype…busted on the floor. I’m so tempted to donate you to the city college.’ Tony muttered, as DUM-E the robot whizzed past him and went over to Riley, bleeping happily.

Putting out a hand to the beeping robot, Riley smiled slightly as it went around and around her legs, as Tony sat down at his desk and sighed heavily, picking up the now broken protype.

Riley sat down on the black sofa in the corner and looked around. She saw the old oil spills, broken bits of suits and models laying around and finally at Tony, who pulled a funny face at her.

‘So Kid. What do you fancy doing?’

‘Whatever. I’m not bothered.’ Riley shrugged nonchalantly, the familiar smell of oil and coffee calming her anxiety slightly. Tony hummed in thought and pressed a button on his desk, and a large TV all but materialised out of the wall. Riley raised an eyebrow and Tony smirked.

‘Don’t know about you, but I think I want to watch Frozen.’ Riley didn’t say anything and simply looked at the screen as the movie begun to play and Tony started working quietly on a new project.

They sat in a comfortable silence for a while, with Tony working, the film playing and DUM-E beeping every now and then, until the scene where Anna and Hans singing together started and Riley felt her breath catch, as she remembered how she and Natasha would sing it together in the car. Would things ever be the same as they were before the Red Room? Riley didn’t think so and she turned away from the TV.

Tony watched her periodically of course, but no matter what he tried to say to get Riley to open up to him or to just talk, it didn’t work and the little girl refused everything, staring off into the distance, as the sun begun to rise over the Compound.

The titles of the film rolled and Riley blinked as Tony walked over. She didn’t know how long she’d sat there, simply allowing old memories, good and bad to pass over her. She felt like a zombie…unfeeling…empty and numb. She didn’t even know who she was anymore.

‘Kid? You ok?’

‘I’m fine.’ Tony sighed and sat down next to her, giving her a small smile.

‘That bullshit won’t work on me. Of course, you’re not fine…but yano I’m not great at…talking to Kids; however, I want you to know that I’m always here, should you want to chat and I specialise in giving the worst possible advice. So whatever I say to do, probably best to do the opposite of it.’

‘That’s terrible advice.’ Mumbled Riley, picking her fingernails, as Tony’s bigger hands covered hers. She looked up at him, surprised to see his eyes…wet.

‘I know, that’s why I’m the best at giving bad advice. Look Kid. When you were…where you were…we were all shook. We were worried every day, hardly eating or sleeping; we just wanted you back. You’re not alone squirt. Never again. Now let’s get you back to the Medbay before your mom goes apeshit crazy when she sees your empty bed. Ok?’

‘Ok.’

***

‘Where’ve you been?’ Riley looked up from staring at the wall, hearing Natasha’s voice at the door to the Medbay. Tony had brought her back an hour or so ago with orders to try and get some more sleep. He had put the restraints back on and Riley had let him, understanding the severity of the situation now, after their talk earlier; also in Riley’s defence, she spent a good half an hour trying to sleep, but being restrained in the bed wasn’t helping matters and she simply stared at Natasha through lidded eyes, her face expressionless.

‘How do you know I’ve been anywhere.’ She replied easily, turning back to face the wall, as Natasha walked over and sat at the edge of the bed.

‘I should remind you, that I am a trained spy. The slippers by your bed are stuffed full of tissue and Wanda’s dressing gown has been moved.’ Riley huffed and turned to face her again.

‘Uncle Tony let me go down to the lab with him. Completely supervised, so don’t have a go at him. It was nice to get out of here actually. He said it was best to come back, so I could rest before you woke up. But I couldn’t sleep. I did try to, so don’t say that I didn’t try hard enough.’ She said defensively, as Natasha held her hands up in a placating gesture and raised her eyebrows.

‘Okay, okay. Relax Riley, I believe you. Well, I can’t say I’m pleased about your change of scenery this morning without Helen or Bruce’s approval. However, I do appreciate Tony supervising you and also with you being honest with me, instead of lying.’ Riley nodded shortly and stared up at the ceiling, not meeting Natasha’s eyes. Looking her over, Natasha walked over to the IV and changed the liquid food bags over and measured her heart rate and vital signs.

‘All looking much better than last night.’ She commented, with a small smile; Riley didn’t respond, she simply continued to stare at the ceiling. Natasha spotted Riley’s bear Cuddles on the floor, under the bed, clearly tossed there and she frowned – as it was so unlike Riley to not want it; however, determined to get to the issue of her wanderings, she sat on the bed and looked at her daughter.

‘Did you have a nightmare?’

‘What?’ Riley looked at Natasha again and saw that she looked a lot more awake than she did the previous day and suddenly she felt a surge of guilt that she had been the cause of so much concern, from everyone.

‘I just wondered why you went with Tony to the Lab at 3am? I assumed you woke up from a nightmare and couldn’t sleep.’ Riley picked a thread on her blanket and shrugged.

‘Yeah, but I’m fine. Friday just freaked out and told him, so he came up.’ Natasha hummed in response and stroked her hair back slightly.

‘I know this all is pretty crap, but we’re just trying to help you.’

‘I know that.’ Riley said shortly, looking back up at the ceiling.

‘How are you feeling?’

‘Amazing.’ Riley said sarcastically tugging on the restraints and the IV slightly. She heard Natasha sigh quietly.

‘Things will get better. It will just take some time. Here, I’ll take the restraints off, if you promise you wont remove the tube.’ Riley nodded.

‘I need a verbal response kiddo.’

‘I promise.’

‘Good. Here we go then.’ Natasha carefully removed the restraints, frowning at the red marks on Riley’s ankles and wrists from where she had clearly struggled earlier that morning. Riley didn’t reply and she felt tears prickle in her eyes, she blinked them away angrily and sat up.

‘No, they won’t.’

‘Hmm?’

‘Things won’t get better.’

‘Mischief, they will. Me and everyone else understand how horrible this is for you, it will just take some time.’

‘Whatever.’ Came the curt response and Natasha sighed before gesturing around the Medbay.

‘Helen and Bruce have agreed that you’re free to leave and head back to your room if you feel up to it and Tony sent up a backpack, instead of an IV stand, so you don’t have to wheel it around all the time.’

‘Ok.’

‘Do you want to come and sit with everyone or would you rather go up to your room for a bit?’

‘My room.’ Natasha nodded and made to help Riley stand up, but the girl pushed her hands away and shook her head, slightly surprising Natasha.

‘I can do it myself. I’m not an invalid.’

‘I never said you were. It’s okay to need help, you know.’ Natasha replied easily, watching as Riley ignored her, winced and stood up. Natasha pulled out a medium sized backpack from the other side of the bed and adjusted the feeding tubes and bag, so it was all fixed to the bag, instead of the IV and she handed it to Riley.

‘Much more portable and better looking.’ Natasha said, attempting to lighten the mood, but Riley simply shrugged and put the bag on.

‘Can we go now?’

‘Yes, of course. Aren’t you forgetting something though? Or actually, someone?’ Riley frowned in confusion and then followed Natasha’s eyesight to where Cuddles was disregarded on the floor from earlier.

‘No.’

‘What? You love that little bear, don’t you want to take him up to your r…’

‘It’s a stuffed toy for little children and no I don’t. Throw it away or something. I don’t care.’ Natasha’s eyes flickered with a deeper concern for a brief moment, however, she simply nodded and picked up the bear.

‘Sure, no problem. I’ll pop him in the trash in a bit then. Let’s go Kid.’ The assassin had absolutely no intention of throwing Cuddles away, she was very concerned at the depressive state of her daughter and the fact that all her walls were back up. Logically, Natasha figured that Riley would get better soon and be in some sort of normality like before, but there was a voice in her head _‘what if she never does?’_

‘Ok.’ Riley followed Natasha out of the Medbay, through the Compound. They walked past the communal areas and Riley lifted her head up slightly when she heard the familiar voices of the team.

‘-piss off Birdbrain. I was here first and I need my damn coffee.’

‘-whatever man. You smell.’

‘-maybe because I’ve actually been working and not just scarfing down pastries all morning.’

‘-leave my pastries out of this!’ Natasha snorted and peered into the kitchen, where Tony and Clint were arguing.

‘Now, now boys. God it’s like having a house of children.’ Riley stood frozen in place and looked away when Clint pulled a funny face at her. He raised an eyebrow at Natasha in question, but she shook her head and signed to him that she’d talk to him later on. Tony walked over to Riley, but she didn’t acknowledge his presence; simply staring at the floor.

‘Hey Kid – fancy coming back down to the Lab later on? Or we could go and see Pepper – I’m sure she would love to see you.’ Riley shrugged and carried on staring at the floor.

‘Earth to Riley Roo. Anyone in there?’ Tony said in a funny voice, hoping to get a smile out of the little girl, but she didn’t even blink and Natasha stepped forward and put a hand on Riley’s shoulder.

‘Back off Tony, she’s been essentially comatose for days and she’s tired.’

‘Okay, okay.’ Tony put his hands up in a placating gesture and squirmed under Natasha’s raised eyebrow, before turning back to the kitchen. Clint was now making what smelt like pancakes and Natasha’s lips quirked slightly at the sight.

‘I’ll be down in a bit. Don’t set the kitchen on fire.’

‘Hey! That was one time Romanoff!’

‘Three, not counting last month.’ Clint huffed in amusement, but then watched sadly as Natasha gently steered Riley to the elevator, before turning back around fleetingly and giving him a sad smile.


	67. Depression

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha is concerned about Riley

Opening the door to her bedroom, Natasha gently guided Riley inside and pulled out a fresh pair of pjs, before gesturing to the ensuite.

‘Okay, I know you’re tired, but you need to have a shower first, because no offense, you stink.’ Riley simply stared at Natasha in confusion.

‘What about the wires and my stitches? They’re not meant to get wet.’

‘I know, I’m going to have to help you I’m afraid, just until you’re feeling better.’

‘This sucks.’ The little girl whined, close to tears, as Natasha sighed and cupped her cheek in an affectionate manner.

‘It won’t be forever. Just until you get better. Now, come on. Quicker you’re in, quicker you’re out.’ Riley sighed and nodded, following Natasha into the bathroom.

After a relatively hassle free shower, they both emerged from the bathroom and made their way back into Riley’s bedroom; with Riley looking a lot cleaner than before, in her favourite unicorn pajamas. Natasha gently guided her over to her bed and settled her in, tucking the duvet and comforter around her securely, but not so that it was uncomfortable.

‘Do you wanna read or I could bring my laptop in, so we could watch a fil…’

‘-I’m tired. I just want to rest, if that’s ok.’ Natasha frowned for a second, but then nodded – slightly surprised that Riley seemingly wanted to be left alone and didn’t even want her around.

‘Of course.’ Natasha walked over and drew the curtains, before checking on the IV wires and feeding tube which were all linked to the backpack by the side of her bed.

‘Now, you remember what I told you on the way up?’

‘No pulling the tube out, no pulling the IV wires out and if I need anything ask Friday to get you.’ Recited the little girl in an emotionless voice, as Natasha nodded.

‘Good girl. Are you sure you don’t want me to stay?’

‘I’m sure.’ Riley then turned on her side and curled up; looking seemingly smaller than she had done in a while. Natasha placed a kiss on the top of her head and walked out of Riley’s bedroom, pulling the door ajar, before she made her way down to the communal areas.

‘Penny for your thoughts?’

‘Not in the mood for a counselling session Rogers.’ Natasha opened the fridge and poured herself a glass of orange juice, watching as Steve hummed and sat down at the counter, with a bowl of fruit.

‘Where’s everyone else?’ She asked, sitting down opposite Steve, who gave her a smile.

‘I think Tony and Bruce are in the labs; Sam and Buck are out for a run, Clint’s on a call with his family and I think Wanda is still asleep.’

‘Teenagers.’ Muttered Natasha, rolling her eyes fondly, as she sipped her drink. She then looked at Steve and raised an eyebrow.

‘What about you?’

‘What about me?’

‘Why are you here? You always go for a morning run.’

‘Didn’t feel like it.’

‘You’re a rubbish liar.’ Steve chuckled and ate a few pieces of fruit, before nodding and looking at Natasha seriously.

‘I heard what happened earlier about Riley’s situation. You gave Bruce the all clear to tell everyone.’

‘News travels fast in here.’ Natasha said stoically, staring out of the window, before she looked back at Steve.

‘-but you didn’t answer my question. Why are you here?’

‘Thought you could use a friend. Are you okay?’

‘I’m always okay.’

‘I know, but you don’t always have to be Nat.’ Natasha didn’t answer for a moment, before she turned to look at Steve seriously.

‘I don’t know what to do. I feel like I’m failing her.’ She admitted in a small voice, before she sighed and rubbed a hand down her face.

‘I haven’t seen Riley like this before…I think she’s depressed and I have no idea how to help her. She won’t talk to me and she’s just so…empty. Helen mentioned getting a SHIELD professional in to talk to her, but I don’t know if that will just make her shut down more.’

‘Riley needs stability right now and she has that here, with us and with you. You’re doing a great job Nat. She’s out of the Medbay and that in itself is progress. Remember, that it was just a few days ago that she was completely out of it and had to be sedated.’

‘Yes, I know. I just don’t know what I’m doing. Nothing I do seems to be working.’ Steve gave her a small smile and took a bite of mango, before he gave her a knowing look.

‘Does any parent know what they’re doing?’

‘Touche Rogers, but most children haven’t been sexually abused, tortured and brain washed.’

‘That is very true, but most parents are not Avengers.’ He replied evenly and Natasha rolled her eyes in response.

‘Nat, she has an amazing support system and it’ll take time, but she will get better. It isn’t your fault she got taken.’

‘I should have been with her, not Yelena.’

‘We were called on a mission Natasha, you knew that your job was dangerous and you warned Riley of this. You barely go on field missions anymore and it was not your fault. You can’t be with her all the time.’

‘…I guess so…I might go and say hi to Laura and the kids.’ Natasha stood up and made to head down to Clint’s room before she turned back and gave Steve a genuine smile.

‘Thanks for the chat.’

‘Anytime Nat.’

***

Natasha wrapped her knuckles on the door and she heard muffled talking, before Clint opened the door and then grinned at her.

‘Hey.’

‘Hey yourself.’

‘How’s Riley doing?’

‘She’s…getting better. Anyway, I heard through the grapevine that you were on a call with everyone?’ Clint gave her an understanding look and gestured behind him at an open laptop.

‘Yep. Fancy saying hi?’

‘Why else would I be here?’

‘Oh yeah, not just to see me.’ Replied Clint in a fake sad voice, but chuckled as Natasha shoved him slightly and followed him over to the laptop.

‘Guys – look who wanted to say hi.’ Natasha looked at the screen and grinned when she saw the rest of the Bartons there.

‘Auntie Nat!’ Lila shrieked happily, giving a toothy grin.

‘Hey Lilabear, how are you?’

‘I’m great! Look!’ She held out her hand and Natasha raised an eyebrow at the small white tooth that was there.

‘I lost another tooth! That means the tooth fairy will come later!’ Smirking, Natasha nodded and looked at Laura who signed _‘haven’t got any change in the house, so the tooth fairy has to go out later now’_ and she laughed.

‘That’s great news Lils! How are you Coop?’ The eldest boy smiled at her and shrugged.

‘I’m ok. I miss you and Dad.’

‘Aw, I miss you too – hopefully we can all get together soon, though, yeah?’ Cooper nodded and Nate waved shyly from his place on Laura’s lap.

‘Hi traitor, how are you doing?’

‘I got a gold star from school!’

‘That’s awesome Nate, are you being a good boy for your mommy?’

‘Yep!’ Natasha smiled and looked at Laura.

‘How are you?’

‘Apart from absolutely exhausted looking after this rowdy bunch, I’m good. What about you Nat – you look tired and a bit pale; are you feeling alright?’ Natasha blinked and swallowed a lump in her throat, before answering in as confident a voice as she could muster.

‘I’m alright. Things have been a bit…all over the place the past few weeks and I guess I just need a break.’ Clint put a comforting hand on her shoulder, as she continued to talk to Laura about the Kids and about general life on the farm, until Lila spoke up suddenly.

‘Can I talk to Riley? She hasn’t called me in forever Auntie Nat! I wanna show her my new barbies!’ Natasha’s smile wavered slightly and she turned to Clint who shook his head slightly – informing her that they hadn’t told the children about the going ons.

‘She’s just having a nap Lils, I’m sure she’ll call you soon though. I know she’ll be missing you. Anyway…’

‘-why is she sleeping – it’s almost lunchtime! Can she call later today?’

‘Lila, that’s enough sweetheart, Riley is a bit under the weather, ok; she’ll talk to you soon.’ Laura interjected, saving Natasha from having to make up something to pacify the 9 year old’s curiosity – she was too much like her dad in that aspect; very intuitive and very curious.

Lila’s face fell slightly and she nodded, before Natasha gave her a smile, which she returned, albeit with less enthusiasm than usual.

‘Okay guys, I’ve got some paperwork to do and a certain teenager to wake up for her training session.’

‘Wanda’s still asleep?’ Clint said in surprise and Natasha nodded with a smirk.

‘Yep, teenagers hmm?’ She then said goodbye to the Barton’s, with promises of meeting up with them as soon as she could do and taking care of herself (her promise to Laura), before waving to Clint and making her way to Wanda’s room.


	68. Visions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha has a chat with Wanda and learns a bit more about the horrors that Riley encountered.

Natasha rapped her knuckles lightly on Wanda’s bedroom door and was surprised to be greeted with complete silence.

‘Wanda? Come on Kid, up and at ‘em.’ After more silence, Natasha begun to become concerned, it was not like Wanda to be late waking up, let alone be this heavy of a sleeper, as usually the slightest noise would wake her up.

Curiousity getting the better of her, Natasha pushed open the girls bedroom door and saw Wanda fast asleep, cocooned in red tendrils and a pile of blankets, breathing deeply, inside a mist of her red powers. Walking forward carefully, Natasha was surprised when the mist suddenly moved and allowed her entry towards the bed.

‘Wanda, time to wake up, come on Kiddo.’ Natasha spoke gently, walking over and rubbing her hand lightly down the teenagers arm, as she roused from sleep, blinking in confusion, her red tendrils dissipating, along with the mist.

‘Wha’s goin’ on? Tasha?’

‘Hey little witch, it’s just me. You’ve been asleep for a while, I was just checking everything was ok?’ Blinking sleepily, Wanda sighed and sat up, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, as Natasha perched on the edge of her bed, giving her a soft, but concerned smile.

‘Didn’t sleep much really.’ Wanda replied, yawning, as Natasha’s eyes furrowed in confusion and pointed at the clock on the wall.

‘Kid, it’s lunchtime, you’ve been asleep for almost 14 hours.’ Natasha pointed out, watching as Wanda shook her head and yawned again.

‘I haven’t had much sleep. Rough night.’

‘How come? It’s not like you to miss training and even when you’re tired and can’t sleep, you don’t like being cooped up in here.’ Wanda stayed silent and her eyes reddened for a brief moment, before she turned away from Natasha and pulled her phone out of her bedside table.

‘Wanda. Please talk to me. I’m worried about you.’ Natasha gently, but firmly plucked her phone out of her hand and raised an eyebrow questioningly, as the teenager sighed again.

‘Riley.’ Wanda muttered, rubbing her eyes again as Natasha frowned.

‘What?’

‘I couldn’t sleep because of Riley.’ Natasha was completely confused and she had no idea what Wanda was talking about, because Riley had been in the Medbay all night and had only just gone to her room an hour or so ago.

‘What do you mean? Did she come in here?’

‘No.’ Wanda didn’t elaborate and Natasha sensed that she was uncomfortable, but she needed to find out what was going on.

‘Come on Kid, help me out here. I don’t know what you mean. What about Riley made you sleep for almost 14 hours?’

‘No, I said I didn’t sleep!’

‘Okay, then tell me what happened.’

‘She…I mean…her thoughts were very loud all night and whenever she did sleep…her dreams…well, her nightmares, kind of sucked me in and I’m just really tired. I couldn’t get out of her head.’ Natasha looked at the teenager in surprise and in concern. Ever since Ultron, Wanda had had a very good grip on her powers, however, this had not happened in a few years.

‘Hang on, you went into her mind, without her permission?’

‘No! No I would never!’ Natasha’s face softened and she reached over and held Wanda’s hand.

‘So, what happened?’

‘I don’t know! Her thoughts were really loud and when she had nightmares…I had them too. I knew that they weren’t mine and I tried to get out of her head, but they were so loud and horrible and I couldn’t get out…there was so much anger and sadness…it was so overwhelming.’ Wanda was near tears at this point and Natasha nodded, before talking in a gentle voice.

‘It wasn’t your fault. Sometimes this happens right?’ Wanda nodded and sniffled slightly, looking determinedly at her hands.

‘It hasn’t happened in ages…I’m sorry.’

‘Kid, it’s understandable. We’ve all been stressed out and I know you wouldn’t mean it.’ Natasha watched as Wanda nodded again and looked at the ceiling.

‘Do you want to talk about what you saw?’

‘I was in a large house with many floors and it was a school…I forget the English name…’

‘A boarding school?’ Natasha guessed, feeling sick, as Wanda nodded.

‘Yes, I think so. There were many students there…all were girls of various ages and Riley was there, but she looked much different and had a different name.’

‘Nova?’ Natasha guessed again, as Wanda nodded and dread flooded Natasha’s stomach as she knew that the nightmares had all been about Riley’s time in the Red Room.

‘Yes. It kept changing a lot, like where she was in the boarding school. One day she was in a cell and was not allowed food, kept being beaten…but when she protested…she was tortured….many times. Always watching a film about a princess and poison…ballet…not eating and killing…death.’ Wanda said in almost a hushed voice, tears brimming in her eyes, but she didn’t allow them to fall.

‘I saw so much pain and blood…beatings and fear. The worst…the worst part was when they tied her up and put the air con on, leaving her starving and freezing…then we all arrived but…but it was like a hallucination…like it wasn’t real.’ Natasha swallowed past a lump in her throat and gestured for Wanda to continue.

‘Then…there was just darkness for a while. This…emptiness that fills her mind of fear…sadness and then you woke me up.’ Wanda finished lamely, as Natasha nodded and squeezed her hand comfortingly.

‘Thank you for telling me. I know how hard that must have been for you and I’m so sorry that you had to see all that.’

‘I just felt trapped and no matter how hard I tried… I couldn’t escape it. I’m sorry.’ Natasha shook her head and shushed her quietly.

‘It wasn’t your fault. You couldn’t help it and I’m sure that the volume of emotions in the nightmares and her thoughts, couldn’t have made it easy for you to escape it. How about we go get some lunch?’ Wanda nodded and took Natasha’s hand as she helped her up.

‘Nat?’

‘Yes?’

‘Thank you.’

‘For what?’

‘Just…for caring and being so understanding.’ Natasha smiled and slung an arm over the tired teenager.

‘Anytime kiddo.’


	69. Troubles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha reaches breaking point and Yelena is a good Aunt

Natasha changed Riley’s feeding bag and tube, and nodded triumphantly at her quick work.

‘All done. How are you feeli…’ Natasha trailed off as she spotted a box of what looked to be tablets on the bedside table. Riley followed her eye sight and lunged for the box, however, Natasha was quicker and held it easily out of her reach with a raised eyebrow.

‘Sleeping pills? These are for Steve and myself, as the normal ones don’t work for us. Bruce made these especially and they are under lock and key in the kitchen Why and how have you got this?’

‘I found them in a cabinet in the kitchen yesterday, when I was looking for batteries for my game, when you were all in a meeting. It wasn’t hard to pick the lock.’

‘What? Why did you take them?’

‘So I could sleep.’ Riley said stubbornly, as if it was obvious and Natasha took a deep breath.

‘You are a child. You cannot take adult medication, let alone that made for enhanced people! Riley. Please, talk to me. I just want to help you. I’ve been through all this, sweetheart, please just talk to me, I can help you.’

‘You don’t get it! I don’t want any help from you. Go. Away.’

‘I do understand, just because I’ve dealt with it, doesn’t mean that I don’t rememb…’

‘GO AWAY!’ Natasha lost her patience and stood up angrily.

‘Fine. Friday will be monitoring your movements and if you leave this room and go anywhere to steal anything else, I will know about it. You cannot steal medication! I don’t know what to do Riley.’

‘How about bog off.’

‘Watch that mouth young lady.’

‘GO AWAY!’ Natasha gritted her teeth and stormed out of the room, before slamming the door behind her, leaving Riley feeling worse than before.

***

‘I know you’re awake.’

Riley sighed and stopped feigning sleep, surprised slightly to see Yelena leaning against the door frame of her bedroom, looking at her with an unreadable expression.

‘Why are you still in here? Hiding from everyone?’

‘No.’

‘Then why?’ Yelena pressed, her eyes roaming over the messy child’s bedroom. There were clothes everywhere, old water bottles across the floor, dust covering the window sill and a musty smell of uncleanliness. It had been almost 4 days, since Riley had been discharged from the Medbay and no matter how hard Natasha or Clint tried, she refused to leave her bedroom. After hearing Natasha’s quiet sobs to Clint, on her way to her own bedroom a few minutes earlier, Yelena took it upon herself to try and get through to the little girl. She would argue that she was worse than Natasha at comforting people, so she decided that a tough love approach might work better.

Riley shrugged and pulled the comforter over her head. Yelena huffed and walked over, before yanking it off the girl, who made an indignant noise.

‘Hey! Give it back!’

‘It smells.’ Yelena pointed out and Riley reached out for it, however, Yelena threw it over her shoulder into the laundry bag by the door, eyebrow raised, as Riley scowled at her.

‘I don’t care. You had no right to do that! Go away.’

‘I am older. I have right.’ Yelena said simply, looking as Riley turned away from her and sniffled slightly.

‘Get up. You also smell.’

‘I said, go away!’

‘No. Not letting you rot away in here.’

‘I don’t care. You’re not my mom and I don’t have to listen to you or anybody else.’ Riley spat, glaring at Yelena who simply glared back.

‘I am not your mother, but your mother is currently very upset and feels as if she is failing you because you are not listening to her either. So, now, I am taking charge.’

‘Whatever.’

‘Last warning.’

‘Please go away.’ Riley mumbled, tears prickling her eyes, as she stared at her lap. Yelena sighed, abandoning the tough love approach and sat on the edge of the bed, before tilting Riley’s chin up. Comfort was not her strong suit, but looking at the little girl who reminded her so much of herself, she decided to try and comfort her, as best as she could do.

‘You have been through a lot, yes?’

‘Yeah.’

‘They are all assholes. I remember it well. Natasha has dealt with that part of her life mostly, but for me…it is still quite fresh.’ Riley listened and nodded, not realising before that it had only been a year or so since Yelena was in the same position as she was.

‘…I don’t wanna make her sad by talking about it…I don’t want her to have to remember everything. I thought you…I thought they had killed you.’

‘I know. I am sorry I could not fight them off, they had gun and…’

‘You did everything you could. It…it wasn’t your fault. It was mine…it’s all my fault.’ Yelena frowned and shook her head slowly.

‘Was not your fault, why you say that?’

‘Because it was! I should have…have fought harder…escaped. Like you did.’

‘You listen to me right now Riley. Was not your fault. Was it my fault or Natasha’s that we not escape until we did?’

‘No! No of course not! You couldn’t have, they had brainwashed you and tortured you and…’

‘So not your fault either.’ Yelena replied simply, as Riley opened and then shut her mouth.

‘How are you feeling, in here?’ Yelena gently tapped her forehead and Riley shrugged, but at a look from Yelena, she sighed and pulled her knees to her chest, as tears started falling down her face.

‘Empty. Numb…like I can’t trust my own thoughts or body anymore. I feel like everyone hates me n…now an…and I cant even…even eat by m…myself! I have…no…no energy and…im worried they’ll come b…back and t…take me away again! I wanna talk to my mom but I don’t want to make her s…sad and now she hates me!’ Riley burst into tears and Yelena somewhat awkwardly opened her arms, and Riley shuffled over to her and accepted the comfort, as the woman rubbed her back, careful of her bandages.

‘Will not happen, not again. They all gone now and we will not let them or anyone take you. Da?’

‘Da.’

‘No-one hates you, we are worried and your mother is very worried. You cannot stay in here to rot. Not an option. Now, try to sleep and we will try again tomorrow to make things better.’ Riley nodded and wiped her tears, before she blinked tiredly and Yelena felt her breathing even out after a while.

Carefully extracting herself from the slumbering child, she turned the lamp off and left the room, before checking on Natasha. She saw that she was fast asleep, curled up to Clint, who was watching a TV show about baking, he looked over at her and smiled sadly.

‘She’ll be fine. It’s just hard on her – she’s never had to deal with something like this before.’

‘Yes. She is doing well, considering what the situation is. I am going to sleep. Good night Barton.’

‘Night Belova.’ Yelena smirked and closed the door quietly, before going to sleep for the night.


	70. Nightmares and talking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a particularly bad nightmare, Riley seeks Natasha's comfort more than ever and finally opens up to her about all her trauma from the Red Room.

_‘Again.’ Came the unrelenting voice of Svetlana as Riley did pirouette after pirouette, ignoring the stabbing hunger pain in her stomach as she did so. She heard a crack and her ankle gave way, making her fall to the floor._

_‘Sloppy. Get up or you will be punished.’ _

_The scene changed from a large ballet room, to a familiar cell. Riley was hung half naked off the wall, beaten and covered in her own vomit, left to hang there by the soldiers, until Svetlana decided that her punishment would be over. _

***

Riley woke up screaming and screamed louder after hearing multiple items crash around her.

‘MOMMY!’ Her bedroom door flung open and Natasha appeared, knife clasped in her hand, as she surveyed the room. Her eyes immediately fell on the hysterical child, who was curled up into a ball on her bed, breathing rapidly.

‘Riley? Shhhh. It’s okay, mommy’s here.’ Natasha put down the knife and walked next to the child, who was now crying loudly.

‘Shhh… it was just a nightmare. I’m here. I need you to breathe for me, baby.’ Tentatively reaching over, Natasha put a gentle but firm hand on the child’s shoulder, in hopes that touch would be able to ground her. After a few moments, her breathing had returned to a normal speed and she sniffled miserably looking at Natasha, who gave her a small smile, however, when she moved to sit up, she seemingly had realised something and Natasha frowned as her body stiffened and she edged away from her.

‘What’s going on Kid?’ Riley bit her lip and a tear fell down her face, she looked utterly humiliated and Natasha then realised what had happened, when the faint smell of ammonia hit her nose. 

‘I’m sorry! I’m…sorry! I d…didn’t m…mean to!’ Not really knowing how to handle the situation, Natasha racked her brain for what to do and tried to remember reading any articles that night that could help her; however nothing sprang to mind, so she decided to go with her gut instincts. This had never happened before with Riley, however, Natasha knew that her mind and body had been through a lot in a short space of time, so she figured that the nightmare had just been too much for her. She gave Riley a gentle smile and waved her hand dismissively.

‘Sweetie, it’s alright, accidents happen. It’s nothing to worry about. It happens to everyone at some point. Here, let me put these in the wash.’ Riley didn’t say anything, but she stood up and awkwardly handed Natasha the sodden bedsheets and then Natasha looked at her pajamas, which were also wet through.

‘Just give me a second, wait here.’ Walking down the hallway, through a side door into the laundry room, Natasha put the wet things into the wash and then returned to Riley’s bedroom with fresh bedding and clothes.

‘Right, let’s get you cleaned up.’ Riley nodded miserably and followed Natasha into the ensuite and waited whilst she prepared a bath for her. Putting a few capfuls of bubble bath, seemed to be the right move, as Riley gave her a small smile.

‘Alright, clothes off and hop in. Mind your wires.’ Helping her strip out of her sodden clothes, Natasha then guided her into the bath and handed her a wash cloth.

‘I’m going to change your sheets. Give yourself a quick wash and I’ll be back in a few minutes, ok?’ Riley sniffled and nodded, before Natasha left the room. Feeling more humiliated than she had done before, Riley felt silent tears trickle down her cheeks as she washed herself and pulled her knees to her chest, putting her head in her arms, as she cried. She didn’t notice Natasha’s presence, until she felt a hand run through her hair soothingly.

‘You all clean now?’ A nod and Natasha gave her a kind smile, before holding her hand out.

‘Good, come on Kiddo. Out you get.’

After drying her and helping her get changed to avoid pulling at the bandages or wires, Natasha sat down on the bed with Riley, who immediately climbed onto her lap and started crying again. Shushing her quietly, Natasha ran her fingers through her hair and rocked her back and forth gently, once again, feeling out of her depth as a parent.

‘Must have been a bitch of a nightmare.’ Natasha mused softly, as Riley nodded and hiccoughed with the force of her crying.

‘I…I’m sorry! I didn’t…I didn’t m…mean to! I’m not a…a baby!’

‘Hey, shhh. I know. I never said you were a baby. I know you didn’t mean to. You’ve been through a lot. This is just a sign that your body is trying to say that it needs more time to recover.’

‘…but…please don’t…please d…don’t h…hate me!’ Wailed the little girl, as Natasha raised an eyebrow at her in confusion.

‘What for? Wetting the bed? Kid, it was an accident and…’

‘-no…for before.’ Riley said sadly, playing with a ring on Natasha’s finger as she rubbed her stomach softly.

‘I could never hate you. I just got frustrated when you refused to talk to me. I just want to help you. Can I ask you a question? Whatever your response is, I will not be mad, I’m just curious.’ She felt Riley nod into her chest.

‘You said earlier that you don’t want any help from me. Have I done something to upset you?’

‘No!’ Riley said quickly, then she remembered her conversation with Yelena and decided to tell her mom the truth.

‘It’s not you…I just… I wanted to talk to you…so badly but I…I didn’t wanna make you sad by…by making you relive everything that you’ve dealt w…with. I thought it would all go away…but it isn’t!’ Feeling her heart all but break with those words, Natasha hugged Riley closer and breathed in her familiar apple shampoo smell.

‘_Malyska. _Can you remember what I told you, when I said I was adopting you?’ Riley frowned for a moment at the sudden change of conversation and then nodded, murmuring slightly.

‘That…that we were in this together and…and that I could t…tell you anything no matter…no matter what.’ Natasha hummed in response and continued to run her fingers through her curls.

‘Exactly. I would never want you to suffer in silence and I know you were just thinking of me, but it’s my job as your mama, to help you – not the other way around. Even though it happened to me a while ago, doesn’t mean that I’ve ‘dealt’ with it all. On the contrary, I have merely blocked a lot of it out. Compartmentalisation, is something that I use often. So, I promise that you wont make me sad or make me relive anything; please will you talk to me about something that’s bothering you? Maybe I can help? I promise it won’t make me sad.’ Riley looked up at her with teary eyes.

‘Promise?’

‘Promise.’ Riley then took a deep breath and told Natasha everything that she had told Yelena before and more, about what had happened at her time in the Red Room. The routine, training, starving, Snow White, the blood and torture and how she felt like nothing was real anymore.

‘I don’t…I don’t even know who I am anymore.’ Riley finished quietly, as Natasha blinked back tears at finally hearing the full extent of everything that her daughter had been put through. Cupping her face in her hands, Natasha tilted Riley’s face towards hers and brushed away her tears with the pads of her thumbs.

‘Thank you for telling me, that must have been really hard Mischief. You have been through so much, but you are still the same amazing little girl, who I love and this will take a while to get over, but I know you can do it. I got some help too, a while ago and talking to a professional, will really help you come to terms with everything. I know that Sam is great at helping people with trauma, maybe if you want, I could ask him to have a chat with you and we could see how that goes?’ Riley nodded.

‘You’re still a Kid and despite everything you’ve been through, you’ve got a big family here who loves you and who is always here for you. You’re going to get through this and I know that things will get better, with time. You are still the same amazing, intelligent, beautiful little girl, who I love and I am and will always be, so proud of you.’ Natasha said gently, as Riley nodded, finally believing her, that things would get better. After telling Natasha everything, she did feel a lot better and felt like a weight had been lifted off her chest.

‘How about you try and go back to sleep? Hmm?’ Riley nodded, before her face crumpled as she realised something.

‘I…I made you throw c…cuddles away! I thought…it was too childish after everything and…and I didn’t need him anymore but…but I made you throw him away!’ Natasha chuckled and shook her head, before holding her hand out to Riley, and helping her stand up.

‘Come with me.’ Frowning, Riley allowed herself to be led into Natasha’s bedroom and watched as the assassin opened her wardrobe and pulled out a familiar looking brown bear from the back of it, before handing it over to her. Riley beamed through her tears and ran over, giving Natasha a big hug, with Cuddles placed firmly under her arm.

‘He’s not thrown away!’

‘I know. I couldn’t throw him away. I figured that it was said in the heat of the moment and that sooner or later, you’d want him back.’ Riley smiled, her first genuine smile since she had gotten back and she rubbed her eyes tiredly, as Natasha smiled at her.

‘How about you sleep in here, with me tonight?’ Nodding instantly, Natasha chuckled as Riley climbed into bed. She helped Riley avoid her wires, as she got her comfortable and tucked her in. Feeling more content than she had in a few days, Riley snuggled closer to Natasha, who held her close and kissed the top of her head.

‘Mommy?’

‘Hmm?’

‘I’m sorry for stealing the pills before. I just…I just wanted to sleep properly.’

‘Thank you Mischief. I know how hard this has all been on you, but no more secrets and bottling things up ok?’

‘Okay. I love you.’

‘I love you more.’


End file.
